Welcome to Gaia! ::

To kick this off, in case no one wants to go first, I'll start out with a question that actually has (I think) a pretty straightforward (though detailed!) answer, but that may be something people always wondered but were afraid to ask.

I was wondering, is it okay to use other people's characters, or shop NPC characters, in your solo stories so long as you have permission to use them and they approve what you've written?

rosemilk: From my perspective, as the person who owns the largest amount of shop NPC characters -- Astraea-Luna and Charonite for one, though Astraea's a more typical NPC -- it is COMPLETELY FINE to use them in your solo stories. It's also fine to assume, ie: if you throw me a quick PM and say, 'is it okay for Charonite to have said this,' or 'is it okay for Astraea to have said this,' I can give you a quick yea-nay.

There is a blanket permission for everyone to have assumed that Luna has awoken your senshi character and for Charonite to have awoken your Negaverser so long as we're all clear and fine on why they were chosen for Negaverse.

In terms of other people's characters: it's an ask-before-use, and give a quick ask on what you'd like to use them for. Here's an example: if you're a Zodiac, and you'd like to say, 'Captain Aries asked my character to patrol double-time around the city to pick up the slack!', you can just PM me, I will say yes, and you can use that in your solos or even as an assumption in other RPs to your heart's content. I think it's important for Captain characters to let this happen -- there's going to be lots of meetings I don't RP, including orders!

Rosemilk out. smile

Shazari: Great answer -- I'll absolutely co-sign the above. I'd add that if you're making extensive use of someone's character, or you're just feeling unsure, it's a great idea to send the character's player your post before you put it up and just ask them to give you a last thumbs-up that everything seems to look in-character to them.

It also might be worth saying that, well, having other characters appear in your solo stories isn't a bad thing, or something that needs to be avoided -- it can be really difficult to write your solo stories as though your character exists in a vaccuum, or only surrounded by their own family members, and our aim isn't to make your lives harder! I think Nerissa has featured in a couple of my solos for Thuban, as they're best friends.

And, of course, I'd encourage and of you whose characters might have reason to, to visit comatose Laney in the hospital -- that's something I hope you'll take advantage of. <3

3-- I think this has already been answered but maybe it would help to have it out here in the open as opposed to lost in the (very big and intimidating) thread? (SPLITTING THIS UP SINCE IT'S ACTUALLY LIKE TWO QUESTIONS):
Can schoolkids carry around weapons if they have a legitimate reason--such as a kid in fencing lessons having their epee, or someone learning a weapons-related martial arts having that particular weapon, etc (NUNCHUCKS).

Additionally, how much damage can a schoolkid do to a youma? It's highly doubtful they could actually defeat one, but what are the lines of believability here?

Cuter: I don't see any reason why a student couldn't carry around a 'weapon' with them, as long as everything's kept in perspective. Your example with a fencing student carrying their epee is reasonable, but a regular Jane Doe wouldn't be toting around a samurai sword or switchblade on a whim. While students are significantly weaker than senshi/Negaverse officers, they aren't entirely defenseless. I would stay away from things like guns, however, as they are far too OP and there would be very very few reasons for a civilian, much less a student, to have their hands on a gun.

As far as damage goes (and please correct me if I'm wrong here, ladies), I think it would really depend on the youma? While it would take a senshi to destroy it, I don't see why a student couldn't cause damage to it, depending on the weapon/method used. A senshi using a pole to impale a youma would be just as effective as a civilian using a pole to impale it. I would just keep in mind that in the realm of reality, most schoolkids would probably run away or freak out over a monster, as opposed to attacking it head-on?

Shazari: Beautiful answer, totally agree -- though I do think in certain circumstances it could be possible for non-senshi/negas to kill a youma; we're all about humans being capable beings too, and a determined group of regular people with some ingenuity could figure out ways to defeat giant monsters. (Perhaps with more casualties.)

Q - How do the schools stack up against each other in academic standards? Crystal as touted as being more of a finishing school/arts school than your average run of the mill school. Do they thusly put less strain on academics or is it the same as Meadowview?

Cuter: As Crystal is a school for privileged young women, I would imagine academics would actually be stressed moreso than they would be at Meadowview. It takes scholarships and wealth to get into Crystal - I'm sure their education program is rigorous and demanding. They have a reputation to uphold, so while they may focus on grace, morality and molding young women into proper young ladies, they'll also have the best education that Daddy's pocketbook can afford.

Q - There's been mention of a Destiny Heights University, what kind of school is it? Is it a high-end institution where only the smartest can go, or is it just a general college where anyone with decent grades can get into? Also, are a few terms at Sovereign Heights required to get into the University, or can you go straight out of high school?

Thanks!

codalion: Can't answer the rest, but SH's entirely optional to my knowledge, both for story purposes and to be the most flexible to the playerbase.

Q - If we're going from schoolkid to non-SH graduated adult are we allowed to give references/suggestions as to how we would like them to look or is that a no?

codalion: Absolutely, I think it makes things easier on our artists and more ideal for everyone all around! Just as long as you keep in mind that guidelines are guidelines and they do their best.

Shazari: Seconded. I provided clothing refs for Lizzy as far as an outfit she could put Gene in, which I think was helpful as a possible starting point for her, and she did amazingly with it <3

rosemilk: Thirded.

Q - If for some reason you are way into your character and do not want them to go past x stage, is that doable?

codalion: I think so! I can't see why not! For certain factions you may have to come up for RP reasons why they're not upgrading as normal, but you'd have to check with your faction specs. Keep in mind if you choose to go this route, it may be a headache for us if you change your mind and do want the rest of your art after all.

Shazari: Unless you're totally non-roleplaying, your character won't be upgraded unless you put in an upgrade request for them -- so yes, you can progress more slowly than the guidelines demand, if you wish to. <3

rosemilk: Thirded, ho ho.

Cuter: As far as I know, you would simply refrain from posting them in the growths thread and continue to RP as normal. I know of at least one Negaverse officer that intends on remaining Captain and never advancing further in ranks; it's honestly up to you and knowing your character's capabilities. If it doesn't make sense IC for them to rank up, then by all means, don't make them rank up. But, as Coda pointed out, it's best you think this through before you make your decision!

Q - Are we allowed to change the profile for an established character? (ie: flaws and virtues?) If so, do they need to be re-approved with two stamps?

codalion: They probably need to be run by a GM, and we encourage that you guys wait to do this till you're certain your character has actually significantly evolved through RP, not anytime you feel like playing a different character. This is a case by case basis. We stress the importance of making a character at the outset that you do want to play, and then later being able to tweak the profile to accommodate any natural changes that have come about through play.

Shazari: Aptly put. <3

Q - You cannot start counting RPs towards growth until you get the art for your next stage, right? For example, I can submit Albali for Super, but cannot count RPs towards Eternal until I get her Super art, no matter how many I do.

Shazari: I believe you're correct!

Cuter: Correct! Once you receive your art for the growth, any RPs done after that point will count towards your next growth. When I was waiting for Nealite to grow to her Captain stage, all the additional RPs I did after posting for her Captain counted towards nothing. It wasn't until Captain Nealite's art physically showed up that I could start working her towards her General stage. Each time you get art, it's turning back your timeclock - you start fresh and new to get your character developed to their next stage!

Q - WHAT COUNTRY IS DESTINY CITY IN? I'm assuming English is the 'official language'. Is it landlocked or near water or? I might have missed details on this front, but I am personally confused so couldn't hurt to ask?

codalion: AMERICA! ******** YEAH! COMIN' TO SAVE THE ********' DAY YEAH!

As far as I can tell, America Until Proven Otherwise, Unspecified State Probably Near A River And A Coast And Some Mountains And Some Other Stuff Too. It started out a bit more neutral when the shop was a little more lighthearted in tone, but now that we're doing more with character ethnicities and backgrounds it's a lot easier to set it in a real country than in Imaginary Country, and los Estados Unidos is the most familiar country to most of our playerbase. This is the impression I've gotten from rose, anyhow.

Shazari: As far as I know, nebulously somewhere in America.

rosemilk: And definitely landlocked.

Q - Does the shop move in real time? Like, in shop time it's totally March right now?

codalion: More or less! We try and bump shop time along roughly with real time, but it will lag or skip ahead for plot, RP and event reasons.

Shazari: This is how I tend to play it, too.

1) Are there limits to what kind of jobs your character can have? Like say if I wanted a bounty hunter or sexy wannabe stripper(extreme example)?

codalion: Yes and no. It's like any other aspect of a character background -- weeded out in the application/questing process if it's simply unworkable, and dependent on context. We don't want to say that there is any character job that absolutely no character can ever have, but use your common sense here: if it seems ludicrous, this probably isn't the exception. If your common sense tells you your bounty-stripper-assassin will probably not make it through, they probably won't. Ask if you're unsure!

2) Will there ever be another event like Barren Pines?

Cuter: If you mean having 60+ students thrown into a torturous situation with probable death or senshi-awakening... no. But cool events are planned, certainly! biggrin

codalion: But loads of students and torturous situations, on the other hand -- well, let's just say we have events planned. <3

3) If a civilian has their star seed stolen by the negaverse, do they turn into youma? Or just die?

Cuter: They either die or fall into a comatose state; no youma-turning to my knowledge, that was simply a fun twist with the BP event!

4) (This might be a 'we can't answer that yet' question) Do chibi-chibi's and chibis as they age have their senshi forms grow in that way as well? Or do they stay locked in that particular 'stage'?

Cuter: Time will tell on this one <3

5) Do tattoo's count as part of the eternal stage or does it have to be tattoo's that are already there?

Natsube: It should be tattoos that are already there; Nerissa's were asked to be put on specifically, her outfit was fairly similar to her super stage. Tattoos take a fair bit of time so it is not something you are going to see regularly.
If it is something that has happened through RPing, then we can definitely talk.

1) How do the GMs feel about Civilians starting a "Save Our Shining Destiny Brigade/Coalition?" (SOS Destiny Brigade/Coalition)

codalion: Elaborate on what you mean by that? I want to be sure I understand the concept before trying to answer. <3

-edit- Oh Sorry!! ^^;;; What I mean by that is Um, say Azzo wanted to start up a Human resistance force against the Youma or what have you. Basically 'prepare' *coughs* people for what lurks outside at night. To help 'clean up' the city. Especially since he and some of the other BP students can feel the Negaverses Youma. I know for a fact he's going to be seeking them out now that his ribs are better. And what better way to do it than to get community involvement? 8D (Or people laughing at you really hard for being "crazy".)

codalion: Aha! In that case, that sounds like a great idea and I'm all for it -- seriously, I'd love to see more community reaction to all that goes on. You have our blessing.

Does Destiny City have NPC high schools other than Meadowview/Hillworth/Crystal, and can they at least be referenced? I'm asking for the sake of sports seasons, since I imagine that it'd be rather boring for an entire lacrosse season to consist of Hillworth vs Meadowview or Crystal vs Meadowview. XD

Shazari: My take -- Meadowview/Hillworth/Crystal are the inner-city schools and compete in the same athletic divisions (for the most part), which is why they have major rivalries with each other. Other schools do exist, and do compete with the DC three, but they're suburban schools for towns outside the city proper. If you need to name one or two of these in a story, feel free to do so.

codalion: Seconding this. Meadowview/Hillworth/Crystal are very close to one another, but there are more schools in Destiny City than that.

Is Destiny City still a "smallish, college-sized city" or could it be said that it's a slightly bigger city due to the fact there's so many characters in play / smaller city = only so many star seeds to steal?

codalion: The game's evolved, and Destiny City with it -- so yes, at this point we're treating the city like a major metropolitan center.

Shazari: Concur.

rosemilk: When I said "college city", I only meant in terms of the fact that it's a city with a large population of students that's centered around a university and known for it -- like Tucson, Baton Rouge, Boulder, Fayetteville and so on. 'College sized' would be more of a town. So no, it was never intended to be that small, was always intended to be a city, and it's true that it's now regarded as a metropolitan area.

Location-wise, can we assume DC is in the temperate zone of the US since it had a cold winter and a hot summer? It's also got all the standard topographical features, e.g. a coast and a mountain range within reasonable driving / train distance, lake and probably a forest on the outskirts, y/n?

codalion: Y. Nebulous Eastern Seaboard is a pretty good assumption.

Shazari: Agree. For simplicity's sake, when in doubt, climate-wise, I just pretend that DC stands for "District of Columbia" and go from there. It's a pretty reasonable analogue as far as climate/environment/topography.

Does DC have a subway system?

Shazari: Yes. smile

Are we allowed to define "districts" of Destiny City? For instance, saying "there's a neighborhood northways that's popular among students blah blah blah etc"??

I know we can add store blurbs but I don't know if this sort of thing would be welcomed or even useful XD;

Shazari: Yes, please feel welcome! I believe I've cited a Center City and an Old City in at least two of the stories I've done -- based on familiarity, I tend to draw from always-sunny Philadelphia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Philadelphia_neighborhoods ), but here's the link for Washington, D.C.'s as well ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_neighborhoods_of_the_District_of_Columbia_by_ward ), and beyond either of these, you can of course simply MAKE NAMES UP (so long as they're not inappropriately lulzy, of course XD). <3

Concerning DCU, is it possible to have a character attending it or is that off-limits for whatever reason?

I'm just wondering because I haven't seen any characters that're attending DCU at the moment.

rosemilk: You can absolutely attend DCU, but it'll be kind of behind-the-scenes -- we don't have any official listings for it yet, so you won't be on a listing. You'll get a civ form, but not a lot of info (we'd ask you to keep things vague).

I'm curious...would Crystal have a class for something like 'gardening'. Or would there be a place in the school/in the city where one could have a small plot (like a community garden)?


rosemilk: Destiny City's large -- it's absolutely possible that there's either a community garden or a 'gardening club' (there wouldn't be a gardening class unless it was extracurricular) at Crystal.

I've been wondering about the disciplinary structure at Sovereign Heights - are minor offenses handled with detention (such as being forced onto campus cleanup duty?) or are rule breakers handed immediately to the police?


rosemilk: It all depends what the rule was that being broken. If it was an administration rule, such as cheating, it'd go to the dean. Rules broken about abuse and harrassment would get referred to the police. Minor infractions would go to your residential advisor and you'd get warnings. Make up campus cleanup if you'd like!

First question, could we possibly get the school info fleshed out a bit more? There have been problems with rules that were "in mind" but never written down somewhere conflicting with how things would be played, and I think it would help greatly to have maybe a very small section for each school detailing dress code, behavior rules, typical punishments for violations, etc. For example, does Hillworth operate on a demerit system, or do they just suspend boys who act up? Are Crystal girls easily expelled for minor infractions? Etc. I've seen people playing school curfews, rules, and general atmospheres very differently for the same schools, so some guidelines to help reinforce consistency would be awesome.

codalion: Honestly, this really is something where we don't mind people playing it by ear. The schools exist with guidelines, not rules, and we encourage players making up whatever suits their storyline and player needs for their RPs -- with the caveat that these may be subject to change or retconning for other people's needs. Would it kill a battle idea to have Hillworth's curfew be too early? Then make it later! When in doubt, err on the side that restricts other players less, use your common sense, lighten up and realize everything's subject to change. Think of Crystal as an 'average' prep school, Meadowview as an 'average' public school and Hillworth as an 'average' military/reform school.

If there's wide player demand we can provide more up-to-date school writeups, but I honestly don't think it's that big a deal. You can, however, make lists of mentioned teachers, athletic teams, classes and so forth that have been namedropped, and in fact we more than encourage you to.

Shazari: I disagree with Coda (quick, get the smelling salts!) in some respects. I agree there are some aspects of the school that we're fine with you guys fudging insofar as they work best for your stories. Curfew times, whether a particular school has a swimming pool or not, etc. -- the point with those things is that they can all be codified if you guys think that'd be helpful, and perhaps that'll work well once we have the collaborative wiki going. But in other cases, I understand the need for clearer information. I think the strongest example here is Crystal Academy, where there's been confusion about whether this is an easy-peasy school for rich girls, a super-tough school, a school of Heathers and Mean Girls and Clueless, a school of study nerds and prudes, or what. As there's been a lot of confusion on that front, I think it behooves us to provide more clarification up-front on that -- and so that's something that I'll make a promise that we'll do. Adding this to the to-do list in the Admin forum right now. <3

And seconding the want for more school information, because... I heard Crystal girls can't wear makeup? But then there's Melody, and Melody is wearing some makeup--a whole bunch of the girls are wearing some kind of lipstick, too. So I am a little confused on that point.

rosemilk: Melody is definitely wearing lipstick in her template. We're going to put more information up soon, but for now, makeup really isn't okay during school hours. Melody may be wearing her uniform during the evening/out of school which accounts for the makeup. Seniors and prefects may gain the privilege of some small amount of makeup (neutral lipsticks, blush) but we weren't going to ask Lizzy to remove the makeup off the template just because Melody was going to Crystal! As it was I think that was just a fact that we didn't notice.

About how many NPCs are killed every day due youma attacks, star seed thefts, etc? How many pages does the obituary in the Destiny Times/random newspaper here take up?

rosemilk: Destiny City stands at a population of about 800,000. The official death toll is skewed due to the fact that a lot of the deaths can't officially be classified as murder but we're looking at seven deaths a week. The number has risen since Wiseman came into town, so the 1.0 per day is going to rise.

There's been a massive call to Clean Up Crime, though there's also been a massive call to "clean up aliens."

How would other cities view Destiny City? Would they assume that the "terrorists" are a publicity stunt in an attempt for the city to get more visitors? Or has Astraea/Charonite/Wiseman/Someone hacked their way into the local government and prevented such information from spreading? Or can we assume that Destiny City is under quarantine by the rest of the invisible nation and no one knows because the government is full of ninjas and they're just that good?

rosemilk: Astraea's not that good! The rest of America views Destiny City as having sunk into an economic depression that's aggravating the crime rate, and the official word is that organised crime has made its home there since 2008. 'Official'. The National Guard isn't moving in -- there's other stuff to be concerned about.

Is it correct to assume that 18 is the legal driving age, 18/19 for drugs, and 21 is the legal limit for alcohol purchase and consumption?

Shazari: I'd have guessed 16 to drive, 18 for cigarettes, 21 for liquor. <3

Finally, I just accidentally hit a baseball through someone's window. Can I claim that a senshi did it in order to get away with it? (C'mon the ball's all covered with sparkles and everything!)

rosemilk: Your mom has stopped buying that, honey.

Will there eventually be a college with a G.E.D. program? I know a lot of Community Colleges have them, and I was curious if there was going to be such a thing in Destiny for those that might have decided to drop out of Highschool then regretted it later.

Natsube: I'm sure that there is one? Though there wouldn't be art to reflect that, but characters with stories outside of shop art can totally be quested for. This is one of those cases where you can just assume there would be-- most colleges offer G.E.D.'s, Destiny City College is a conglomeration of "most colleges" so if it's a widely accepted thing, it most likely would not be a problem at all.

Shazari: Totally agree with Natsu here. <3

How much information (News archives, etc,) is available on the events in Tokyo in the 1980s? Would any of it turn up in a google search?

rosemilk: Rumours, nothing concrete. Evidence of explosions/deaths that were attributed to other things. Quack magazines. Definite info about Sailor V. Info at a lower level about the scouts, though also keep in mind it'll all be in Japanese and very difficult to sift through.

Also keep in mind that Astraealuna has been going through protecting some of this s**t for her own purposes -- if you want to computer search, it's something Astraea WILL be useful with.

Re: What Shaz Just Posted--

Is there a specific GM to ask about specific plots? Like, if we wanted to do a senshi-centric plot, would we PM Rose (since she plays Astraea)? If we wanted to do a plot centered on a parallel character, would we PM you? Or if there's a GM we're more familiar with, can we just ping it off to them?

Shazari: You can ask any of us about any plots -- what'll end up happening is, if what you're asking about is something that's too faction-specific, the GM you talk to will likely refer you to the person who can best answer for that group, or else it'll be taken to the Admin forum for us to look at all together (depending on what the context of your plot is). One of the reasons I say you can ask any of us, is that we sit in different timezones -- so it may be hard to get a quick answer on something depending on where you yourself sit on the globe. For example, Rose and I live on opposite ends of the Earth -- if she's not around, definitely feel welcome to try me -- I may be able to answer your question right away.

FURTHERMORE, what kind of plots need GM approval? Are there guidelines or something? Like, clearly anything requiring NPC interaction should be brought at least to the NPC's main player. And I know that some people have had purely personal plots nixed by GMs. So, where is the line? :O

Shazari: NPC interaction should be run by the NPC's player, as you noted -- otherwise, you don't need to get approval for every plotline. The general gist of things it's best to ask for approval on are as follows:

- your character or your story would be doing something that affects DC or a large chunk of the RP cast as a whole -- for example, if Larissa wanted to burn down the Crystal Academy dorms. Alternately, if Sailor Proxima wanted to share her senshi cellphone with Serandite, revealing the identities of several dozen senshi to a Negaverser. Which also leads into...

- your character or your story could seriously get someone killed (often your character). This is more likely to come up as a Negaverser issue, for example, if Linarite wanted to try and push an unconscious Nealite off a bridge to her plummeting death (even if she didn't succeed). Attacking the avatar of Queen Beryl would most likely get Linarite killed many times. However, it could come up as a senshi issue very easily too -- see my above example with Sailor Proxima. Nice going, Proxima.

- your character would be altered in such a way that they're substantively different from the profile you applied with. This is the toughest one to figure out, because it's difficult to define "substantively different." While every character likely has a path of character development and growth that they're walking down, and that's a good, good thing, if the development you're considering represents a drastic departure from the profile you applied with, please do run that past us so we can let you know if there's a problem. Where we often see this come up is in cases of characters who're considering having their characters' internal conflicts cause their core personality to fragment into split personalities to be able to cope emotionally with the conflict. That's a non-ideal solution, and raises some ableism-related issues that we'd like to avoid to keep the shop friendly for all, and something that, as GMs, we'll be happy to work with you on to help you keep on developing and challenging your character in a way that will work best for you and for everyone as a group. Also, of course, if you flat-out want to change your character's already-accepted profile, that's something to run past a GM so we can ask one of our Staff Stampers to take a look.

- otherwise, if you're unsure, don't be afraid to take a moment to contact me (or another GM) and ask if, well, it's something you need to ask about? I truly won't mind the interruption. <3

rosemilk: As someone who's been the main plot-approver in the shop, just want to underline everything Shaz has been saying and put a big starry sticker on it.

Adding to the above a major -want- of some sort of way to know if we should get something checked or not. I wasn't even aware what I had been planning would have been a problem at all and it turned out to be one. Right now it seems to be anyone's guess over whether or not to get something checked over by others, and short of asking GMs before any action our character does is there some way of knowing?

Shazari: Let me know if my above answer to Roma clarifies your question -- if not, I'll be happy to go into something further, as I can definitely understand how frustrating it would be to be told that you're not allowed to do X thing, your psychic mind powers should've told you you needed to ask. That's more than non-ideal -- in fact it's simple not how things should be at all. It sucks, and I'd love to avoid causing that kind of difficulty for any players if we can avoid it. <3

And for my own question:

When a character classes up, is it possible for something about their general appearance to change? IE: hair, can it be in a different style? Schee there has bed-head of DOOM, but there's a style very similar to what his actual art is (see: the little clickable in my sig) that I like a lot, and I'm wondering if when he classes to captain if he can have that?

Shazari: Definitely! There's a stickied thread in the -- Diaries section, I believe (I'll be going through and trying to make the guild easier to find things in soon, I know lots of info is difficult to search out or be aware of its existence!) where you can post up for each character if any tweaks are needed to the character for their successive evolutions -- for example, if your character gets a lebret piercing or a mohawk or, say, loses an arm. <3

ALSO

While not so much a question on my part, I just want to take a moment to say that, while I cannot speak for -everyone-, I know a bunch of people who don't feel entitled to metacharacters, but at the same time seeing them go to different people would be nice. I, for one, would be incredibly leery of having a metacharacter because I have my hands full with Scheelite (and hell, even with -him- I don't intend for him to ever go past captain, so it's definitely not about the art and whatnot for me), but this doesn't mean I want to see them go to a certain circle of people either.

I am not going to comment further, because I -understand- why characters right now are going to certain people, I really do. But seeing a comment like that hurts.

codalion: I'm the one who said that, so I'll answer. All of our GMing decisions are made with the whole shop in mind, and what'll be fun for everyone to RP -- not just individuals. This means us too. When we're weighing whom to give which characters we're not thinking about rewarding our favorite people, we're thinking about who can run what plotlines, who can reveal what info, how to balance it so we have a good balance of people who can work together, variety in people playing and giving players the chance to do important things.

We're not perfect, but fundamentally, bad RP management decisions affect the entire RP. Giving a faction head to an inactive or uncooperative player can prevent an entire faction from being able to play. When we're deciding who to give metacharacters, we're not just thinking in terms of the person who'll be playing the metacharacter -- we're thinking in terms of everyone that affects.

I know I personally don't plan on taking any more characters. My three are a big enough commmitment as it is and I've got no interest in filling up any more metaspaces. However, what I said still stands -- we make the managing decisions we feel we have to make. We make them for the good of the shop, the metaplot, and everyone's RPing experience. If you have specific questions feel free to PM them, but we do have to make final decisions and I cannot pretend otherwise.

Shazari: Ah. <3 I understand your concern. We do, actually, think a great deal about who gets what and try to avoid giving everything to the same few people (I had fun participating in the BP plot as a player, but I asked not to be considered for a Zodiac -- I don't want all the special things, either.) While we don't set numeric limits on how many Xs and Ys a specific person can have, we do take into consideration the playerbase as a whole, and try not to keep all the special things to the same few people and ignore everyone else. Please know that your concern is not just heard but, in fact, shared -- this is something we do give strong consideration to in all our decisionmaking, and will continue to do in the future -- both in terms of plots characters can play important/leading roles in, as well as metacharacters which may find homes.

I understand that you guys have to make decisions, I totally get that. I even said that in my post. It was the comment of people only being entitled to their character's stages and nothing more that stings, because I know -for myself- that I've made :/ faces in the past over some things, but this doesn't mean I feel -I'm- entitled to it.

Does that make more sense? ;;()

Cuter: I'm more than certain Coda didn't mean anything offensive by her comment about entitlement in regards to RPers and special characters and I'm sorry it was taken that way. The GMs don't sit here and think you or anyone else feels they're entitled to the special roles and no one's pointing fingers at anyone accusing them of such (I'm feeling a vibe that this is the issue when I read your statement concerning her quote - please correct me if I'm wrong!).

It just boils down to the point of the comment, and not the phrasing: we are here to play the characters we've purchased/won and we should only come to expect that much. SHOULD anyone feel entitled, however, then they'll just be in for a world of disappointment if they end up not getting something they wanted - there are no guarantees.

Does that helps?

rosemilk: I just want to undersign this that Cuter, Coda and Shaz are all completely correct on this issue. From day one of ITNOTM, Natsube and I felt that the metacharacters were definitely a thing off to the side, and it's natural that they've become a big point of excitement for everybody and a shiny object. You should not rate your worth by them. We don't assume that anyone is coming in to want any metacharacter; if you looked at Coda's comment and thought, 'But I've never wanted a metacharacter, I've never felt entitled to one!' then she wasn't speaking to you.

We are incredibly blessed with an understanding, active playerbase who know you can have just as much fun with your character if they have a soul or not -- possibly even more, as a soul's a big responsibility. Like a puppy.

Are there limits on how much property damage you can cause? Razing a whole city block is clearly a no, but what about one building? (Just in case--Gunn's sphere is wicked destructive.)

rosemilk: Depends on the size of the building! We really don't mind you razing, say, a house so long as you go through the proper consequences of it, but before you level a skyscraper ask us. smile

I also have a question involving BP characters.

Do they get their memories back when they upgrade? Or does it greatly depend on what they're upgraded to? Like say If Azzo was upgraded to Negaverse, would he remember that Nealite made him kill Melody? Would he remember anything about BP at all? (ETC)

codalion: Another GM can feel free to overrule me, but I don't think there are any current plans for BP characters to get their memories back? Like, I'm not sure how that would work anyway, their memories aren't repressed IIRC, they're gone. I may be wrong, though, I was not a mastermind behind BP!

rosemilk: All current students who are not Zodiacs do not have their BP memories. However, there's been so many ifs, ands or buts that if at any time (barring Seiana, who I've talked to) I said that a senshi would regain their BP memories, please PM me so that I can lay that question to rest for us all. Sorry about my dropping the ball here.

If BP kids get upgraded to senshi/cavalier/etc do they keep their ability to track Youma?

rosemilk: BP kids lose their ability to track youma if they upgrade.

Is there anyway for BP students to meet and talk about how their lack of memories and such are affecting them mentally? Like, have any of the students started something like that themselves? Do they have to go to a shrink for that?

Or could I have Mel set something like that up. I understand that issues with them remembering may come up (and from what I've heard the chances of them ever remembering is slim), but I just thought it might help some of the former BP students deal with what they are feeling.

Shazari: There's no reason the BP students can't meet up and discuss their troubles (though not all of them may wish to) -- considering they all woke up in the same hospital as part of the same group, they know who their fellow BPers are and some may have chosen to keep contact. Thus -- go right ahead. <3

P.S. They may, on an individual basis, have chosen to see private psychologists/psychiatrists as well.

I just wanted to be clear on something about the Barren Pines aftermath.

The entire world knows nothing about Barren Pines, except for the students who survived it and potentially those outside of BP who befriended BPers during that time (and those that perpetrated it, of course). So if someone was like, "I went to Barren Pines, I swear!" to their parents/teachers/friends, those people would probably think that the student was still a little traumatized and that the cover for this organ ring might have been a school in their heads, but it was just a figment/contortion of their memory and not an actual school at any time. So if a survivor stood on the corner and tried to talk about Barren Pines to people outside of the situation, the population would largely regard them as insane, deeply scarred, or delusional.

So basically, is it correct to assume that the human survivors have no way of ever knowing for certain if it was a real school or if they are just a little unhinged by their flawed memories?

I ask because I'm about to write something with Fallon and her shrink about Barren Pines, and I just wanted to make sure I was treating it correctly in saying that repeatedly mentioning this "Barren Pines" would be regarded as a delusion based on a traumatic event, not a true experience. And continuous discussion of it might be thought of as a relapse into that delusion.

WORDY POST IS WORDY.

rosemilk: It is really genuinely up to that person as to how far they go with the obsession with the delusion. It is regarded as a delusion/something they were told by their captors/something that somehow got into their brains, but as for 'no way of knowing ever' -- there's possibility that, in the future, the human survivors COULD be told by the Zodiacs et al that it was a completely real experience.

I hope that helped -- I think that it'd be understandable in a counselling session as to why Fallon kept coming back to it, not seen as her moving BACKWARDS, just perhaps her not progressing forwards.

Thanks, very helpful!

With BP if someone on the outside was writing to letters to someone who attended, would they have gotten delivered or sent back to the sender? I'm pretty sure this has been answered before but I can't remember =x

rosemilk: They never got there -- sent back to the sender. <3

For the BP students who lost a year of their memories and such, should their ages have changed to match?

Like, for example, when I made Melody for the BP event I made her sixteen. At the end of BP I never changed this, didn't think to honestly. Is this something I need to fix?

rosemilk: Their birthday is their birthday -- it's not going to affect anything. They're possibly going to end up held back in school, but the time spent at BP all in all counts. They'll be their normal age, normal birthday.

Do all eternal scouts have wings like nerissa and nova? <3

rosemilk: It's actually a winged buttbow*, but yes!

*Winged buttbow will not give user power of flight

Natsube: Yes! Though this does not give your scout the ability to fly. Imagine the wings like a very very strange buttbow.*

*please see Rose and I answering things at exactly the same time.

Q - What tolerances do senshi/negaversers gain as they rank up? Do they get sick as easily? Temperature tolerances? Like, can they go to the North Pole in a fuku and be totally ok if a little chilly?

rosemilk: Senshi won't tolerate temperature necessarily or get sick less. It's a very physical skillset without edging into fortitude buffs -- if you're a senshi of a specific element (say, winter?) you could ostensibly handle cold more. You're still going to get just as sick no matter WHAT you're the senshi of (unless you're the senshi of not getting sick).

Q - Is it alright to have students/senshi who have lost family members/friends to the Negaverse?

codalion: Will check with the rest of the divine bureaucracy on this one, but I certainly don't see why not. These are real things happening to real people, after all, not humanity-less redshirts. Those starseeds have got to come from somewhere.

Shazari: I'd be all for it. Obviously we hope not everyone will run out and kill a beloved parent/sibling, as then the losses become just an ocean of sad tales, but generally I've got no problem with death being real and tangible.

Q - Cell phones, do they pop out with henshin pens now?

Cuter: For the sake of keeping things from getting too confusing, I'm going to say yes, they'll get their phones when they get their henshin pens (Rose, please correct me if I'm wrong on that one!).

rosemilk: You get the cellphone automatically with the pen. smile

Can the Senshi use their previous stage powers? Say like you have an Eternal Senshi, can they use their normal senshi and super senshi powers in that Eternal Stage?

Shazari: Absolutely they can. smile

So I just realized as I was rping with Coda that I have NO idea when the break-off point was when Serenity and Endymion died. I assumed it was after everything that was in the manga/anime, but you know what they say about people who assume. So, before I screw up anything (else?) I figure it was probably intelligent to ask. When in the timeline did everyone in the cannon die? (Hope this isn't an illegal question to ask ;;; )

rosemilk: Canonically Endymion and Serenity died at the Cauldron at the end of Stars -- just about everyone died around this point, barring the Shitennou (first season).

Shazari: Note: NotM therefore relies more upon the manga ending of Stars, if that helps (though it also relies more upon the anime version of Nehelenia's storyline).

EDIT

Also, DOES Helios have the Golden Crystal? Nehelenia/Selene/Corinna made mention of it in "This Dream is for You, So Pay the Price" and I realized I have no idea.

Shazari: Nehelenia doesn't know either -- that's a guess on her part (actually so is her threat that Black Lady will steal it, given the chance! She has know way of knowing this at the time, she's just talking a big talk.)

No worries, I knew she didn't <3 I just realized that I didn't either ;;;

rosemilk: Endymion has the Golden Crystal. smile

What's the upper age limit for senshi? It was said earlier in the game that adults could only be Negaverse. Is this still correct?

rosemilk: Still currently true, though we're relaxing the rules for cavaliers et al. The upper age limit is currently in the 18-20.

Shazari: In the future we'll be considering lifting the age limit a little bit overall -- but for now, I'd advise sticking to nothing above Sovereign Heights age. <3

Once a Scout is henshined up is it possible for them to change out of their uniforms into another costume of sorts, as Nealite did when she was masquerading as Sailor Nea?

Shazari: Interesting question -- Coda and I sat and mulled it over a bit. Senshi, Negas, and Powered Individuals in general can take off MUCH of their uniform, but the base of it: the bodice/skirt, or the shirt/pants, etc. can't be removed without losing your powered form -- otherwise every senshi would change into plainclothes before going on patrol. In the case of Sailor Nea, assume she did some creative tucking-in of her dress to get it under the senshi outfit (our little ret-con, sorry). But, in general, you can take off gloves, shoes, overcoats, tiaras, etc. etc. etc. The base has to stay. If someone else tries to rip off a powered individual's clothing, rather than de-henshinning them, it simply won't work: the clothing reappears as soon as it's gone.

Cuter: Hi! I think I can clarify this for everyone, actually, without need for ret-con. When Sailor Nea went into action, her outfit base actually WAS the same as her uniform - she just accessorized and spruced it up. Here is a doodle Tig was kind enough to do for me when I submitted the plot idea to Rose and as you can see, roll down the sleeves, take off a few things and you've got her Lieutenant stage. Base still there the whole time, keeping her as Lt. Nealite <3

I completely agree with Shaz/Coda's call on that the base SHOULD stay for all powered up individuals. Nothing can stop you for putting things OVER the outfit - there are plenty of ways to be creative with it but keeping the original base intact is a must. (Hairstyle change is a good way to throw off others too, and that doesn't require messing with the base at all!)

Can individual senshi to distrust Cavaliers? Not on an individual basis, but as a whole, blanket distrust? I know there's an automatic pull in most senshi towards Serenity, so I want to know if there's something for Cavaliers that I should be taking into account, too. :O

Shazari: Yes, they can. <3

Can senshi battle other senshi? I recall there being something on the front page, but I wanted to check and clarify--not just "we need to catch Nerissa" battle, but "I'm pissed at you here is a faceful of fire" battle.

Shazari: Yes, they can. <3

Is there any way we can easily tell when the cellphones for senshi are up aside from trying to track down the huge sailor senshi meeting rp to try and plug the senshi name into the url? Because I don't have the link saved and honestly don't know when those are updated.

rosemilk: We'll be posting up a link soon to the resting URL where you can get your cellphones -- we just need to finish the latest batch. We'll announce it when we've got the URL up!

If a senshi is awakened as a moon court senshi, do they lose their regular form? The only real precedent we have for this right now is Pegasus/Helios, which is sort of like comparing apples to oranges since Helios isn't a senshi...

rosemilk: They do not lose their regular form. smile

Refresh my memory, how "old" does a concept have to be to fit as a power sphere? I know the general rule is "the time of the Silver Millenium," but there's a bit of a lack of consistency on that front (is it medieval times or predating human history?) -- so, is "at least a thousand years" a good frame of reference?

codalion: Yeah, this is subjective -- at least a thousand years is good, with some more recent exceptions. I would say the hard and fast line is "absolutely before the age of gunpowder."

rosemilk: The problems mainly stem from the fact that the Silver Millenium is a very vague time in our history, thanks Naoko. We're assuming that due to the fact that it's a complete civilisation, saying it's human prehistory is useless because it'll include a lot of civilisation concepts anyway. We'll be taking post-medieval concepts on a case by case basis.

Can we assume that new senshi get a basic how-to course from the guardian cat that awakens them, too? (Taranis would like know just how much Derp will be coaching him.)

rosemilk: You are told:

-- Your powers
-- Given your cellphone
-- Told who your enemy is in less or more detail
-- Told what youma are
-- Told how to henshin up and henshin down
-- Had the Moon Princess mentioned

Shazari: Derp may also coach him about waffles. I mean, this is Derp. <3

Can senshi have unrelated accessories to their outfits? I know negaverse customs can probably stick on necklaces and vials (Serandite for example xD) but can senshi do that too? Most of the senshi jewelry I've seen are pretty closely related to their spheres but I dont know if they can stick other stuff on?

Also excluding meta senshi and canon characters, will normal senshi ever be able to use a staff to channel their powers? Provided that it can't be used as a weapon in any way whatsoever, does a senshi have the option of channeling it through a staff?

Shazari: Senshi can put items on after they henshin, but nothing they were wearing before henshin will still be on them once they do. Anything they put on post-henshin, they'd have to carry with them, set down while they henshin, and then put back on each time -- a senshi can't add items to their fuku that would ever become magically incorporated into it, nor can they (usually) make permanent alterations to it (Sailor Nerissa's nose-ring a creepy exception). Super Sailor Iris has to rip off her rainbow butt-bow anew EVERY TIME, poor thing. biggrin <3

It's unlikely a regular senshi will ever get to use a channeling staff in his/her attack unless:
- they're a faction leader (royal or captain)
- they're the senshi of staves
- they're the senshi of channeling

From a PM I sent ages ago regarding a concept attack that involved having an item to channel it, way back when when, was told that senshi having items tend to be leaders of teams (I believe? I've deleted the PM since but I think that was the gist of it). Are these just metaplot teams or if people plot to form a team, could the leader of that team request to get an item upon their next upgrade?

Shazari: Not just metaplot teams -- Sailor Pegasus, leader of the Dream Team, has a bell in her super stage. There's no gaurantee that all captains will be granted items, or that players can choose what item they'd like -- but we won't purposely go out of our way to mess with you and give you stuff that's unsuitable, not to worry. <3

What is the variety of feeling on devotion to Queen Serenity? All senshi feel a pull to her, yes? But, like... could some senshi view her as like, a figurehead? Like, yes, she is necessary, but what if she never comes, we've got to be prepared just in case, sort of thing? Is that possible?

rosemilk: It's absolutely possible. Sailor Thuban has a massive devotion to the Lunar court and the Lunar monarchs; Sailor Nerissa is probably only fighting so that the Lunar senshi can come and take it out of her hands and let her walk away -- feelings about Serenity will differ and that's completely fine, though people who have been around the Ancient Lady and felt her pull may differ yet again.

If two powered-up characters on the same side (i.e. 2 Negas or 2 Senshi) know each other in their human forms very well, is it possible for them to see through the glamour and realize who it is they are staring at beneath the fuku? If they made physical contact, would it be more likely?

I am speaking specifically about the potential for Taranis/Magellan to recognize each other through body language/eye contact/etcetera in his awakening RP, but it seemed like something other people might wonder about too.

Natsube: They would not recognize each other! Please see Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon-- the glamour doesn't know about your character's personal relationships, so until you see them transform or you actually tell them, they won't know. Maddy and Jesse grew up together and are pretty close friends, but they had no idea they were on the same team, even from the same court.

1. Does the appearance of the henshin pen stay the same when a senshi powers up? E.g. In the anime/manga, the senshi's henshi pens changed to the Star Power Stick, Crystal Change Rod when they powered up.

Natsube: Either or, you can choose! I drew the henshin pen the same way as they appeared in the original season, but I don't see why it wouldn't follow the series? AKA go for it if you'd like?

Shazari: Certainly fine with me too. <3

Q: Is it possible to keep your senshi from joining a 'team'?

codalion: Sure, absolutely! No one has to be on any teams they don't want to be on -- unless, of course, they're in a faction that requires it. We encourage it because we think senshi working together allows them to be a lot more effective/powerful as a group, as tends to be the case with magic-based fighters: in addition, making more character connections is just more likely to open plot doors for people. However, it's certainly possible to play and get involved without a formalized team.

Q: If teams form will they require a leader? Or, will they be allowed to have a leaderless group?

codalion: Team structure is up to the people who make the team -- if you want to make it democratic, oligarchic, totalitarian, theocratic, plutocratic, communist, determined entirely by recurrent games of rock-paper-scissors, go for it. That being said, teams tend to have captains for a reason: trying to run a democratic fighting unit is generally akin to trying to find an asbestos shard in a haystack. Chain of command is a survival attribute. Respecting a chain of command is a survival skill.

Q: At the arrival of canon and inner/outer court souls, will senshi with like powers be 'drawn' to them, as in, will say Merope be 'drawn' to Neptune? Or, will senshi see inner/outer/canon souls as just other senshi?

codalion: The Inner and Outer Senshi are the highest-ranking members of the White Lunar Court: those who are loyal to the Lunars and Princess Serenity are likely to respect them and their leadership, particularly that of Venus and Uranus. However, none of this functions on mind control. (Or does it.) ((It doesn't.)) (((Or does it.))) ((((Okay enough of that.))))

rosemilk: There's no natural attraction/pull towards your court 'leader'.

Twin Senshi are totally allowed but not twin senshi on the same cert, right?

Shazari: I would avoid twin/sibling senshi -- but for reference, no, the only two-character cert you can expect to see is Sailors Gemini I and II.

Just sort of a clarifying question 'cause I'm kinda slow--why would you avoid sibling senshi? Twins I get, there's like a "LOOK HOW SPECIAL WE ARE" vibe going there. For regular old siblings, is it just something you want kept on the downlow, as in "this is not very common let's not have it be too common", or something that should be avoided at all costs?

Asking because this might affect one of my slots, is all :O

Shazari: Definitely not an "avoid at all costs" -- just that we don't want a ton of these, or it starts to look statistically fishy. <3

rosemilk: As senshidom in this case here is not genetic.

MORE QUESTIONS.

Are Great Crystals like starseeds in that anyone can reach into your chest and yank them out? Or are they more like, well, Great Crystals in that only specific people can get them out of someone? In "Your Princess is in Another Castle", Wiseman seems to call the Opal Crystal out of Chronos and put it in his own chest--could Chronos feasibly reach into his chest and grab it back, if she got close enough? (Not recommended, clearly, but.)

I feel like I should know this. Not, like, because of any involvement in the metaplot, but because of watching the first season which was the one with the Crystals, wasn't it? Sorry, former wording was sort of douchey.

codalion: Great Crystals have a particular bond to their rightful owners and, as a result, not just anyone can reach in and yank them out at any time: see the Cora dream solo But One Little Girl Got Away for how he stole Nehelenia's Crystal as well, i.e. by tricking her into going Princess. However, Wiseman isn't their rightful owner, is he?

Can Senshi/Negas/Cavalier sense henshin'd characters when they are not henshin'd? AS IN -- Linarite cannot sense that Fallon is a senshi even if she is looking the civilian!Fallon right in the face. But would Fallon be able to sense that there was a powered-up Nega in the vicinity if she was NOT in her own fuku?

Shazari: I'm gonna go with no on this -- other admins feel free to disagree.

codalion: I second this answer!

rosemilk: Thirded.

Senshi and Negas can sense energy. Can they tell the difference between a Sailor and a Super Sailor? Or a Lt. and a Captain? As in, do they register the difference in energy?

Shazari: Yes, unless the energy's being purposefully masked in some way. <3

Do Cavaliers register as something different to their spidey senses? What about Parallels? What about guardian cats?

Shazari: Cavaliers register slightly differently, but only to other cavaliers -- much like Zodiacs would be able to register the familiar energy of their fellow Zodiacs, but other senshi would just see "another senshi." Same goes for the parallels -- who otherwise read with energy that seems to be exactly like the white moon senshi and the white earth cavaliers.

Is dark/light energy based on whether you have a corrupted starseed or not? As in, a powered-up character could close their eyes and know if the other powered-up character they were looking at was good or bad?

Shazari: Yes, unless the energy's being purposefully masked in some way. <3

AWKWARD QUESTION THAT I HAVE BEEN PUZZLING OVER SINCE THE OPAL CRYSTAL GETTING STOLEN:

What exactly is the significance of the Opal Crystal being stolen to the Zodiac Guard, other than the obvious OMG PRINCESS'S CRYSTAL GOT STOLEN? I never watched the show except the first season, so clearly I never made it to Black Moon. I've been wondering if this will effect Virgo's Zodiac powers at all (since it does affect her quite a lot otherwise) since I think I heard somewhere Chronos can no longer use her Princess-level powers (the tiara magic stuff)? I could be totally wrong! But I don't know, so bringing the question to you guys~...

tl;dr: Does the loss of the Opal Crystal mean Zodiac powers will be lessened?

Shazari: I'm sure you're not the only one wondering -- perfect question for Staff Q&A. <3 This is one I originally bounced off an answer to in the shop thread, so I think that's probably why it's been mostly lost to the ether -- our shop's so fast-moving. At the current time, none of the Zodiac Senshi powers have been affected, nor are they likely to be -- think the Sailor Moon R movie, where the inners outlive the Silver Crystal even when it shatters. Chronos herself is more deeply impacted -- she can still use the powers she typically has access to in her sailor fuku: season escalation, tiara action. She can even still transform into her princess dress, not that that's any real use -- what she can't do is use any of the powers she could only formerly use in her princess form. At present, anyway!

The Zodiacs are likely reasonably concerned -- much as the Parallels are -- about what might happen to their royal if the stolen Great Crystal should be used, or altered, or destroyed: would something terrible happen? Would it kill their princess? Would they fail in their mission as a team? Would it summon the headless horseman? So those are things you can keep in mind as far as planning. The Great Crystal is the hub of each senshi court/kingdom because it's the single greatest power source that team has at hand, it's like stealing a country's one, single, tactical nuclear warhead. (I don't know if this answers your question or if I just went off on a tangent that describes the plot of the movie Broken Arrow.)

rosemilk: Chiming in with Shazari here, everything she's said is correct. The Zodiac Opal Crystal is also massively symbolic in terms of powers -- as well of being the symbol of the team, it's the only thing that would ever be able to prop the Zodiacs up to a new level in terms of power, they've lost their tactical warhead as Shaz pointed out, and without it there's a big risk they'd never be able to take down Chaos again. They've lost their trump card.

And as Aries says, they've lost theirs, and now the enemy has THEIR trump card. It's not just about what they've lost, but what the enemy has gained. There's even the fear that Wiseman and Black Lady could destroy Chronos through it.

1-- Okay, so I was writing a solo and came to a sudden and terrible realization and this sudden, terrible realization is: I don't know how far Virgo would remember the Silver Millenium? And I guess this is a good question for anyone with an old soul, original or not, but exactly how much would Virgo remember? A lot about the Zodiacs, since they were like a tightly-knit group of tight-knittedness, closer than the H and O of H2O, but what would she remember of the Moon Court?


rosemilk: Virgo should remember the Silver Millenium -- definitely about the Zodiacs, utterly and completely! The Zodiacs only got to go rarely to big shindigs as they were out Holding The LIne, but she'd remember stuff OF the Moon Court -- it's more like being the military in one country but knowing who's the president in the next one. She wasn't likely to have had tea with Serenity, nor any of the Zodiacs barring Chronos/Eon/Zue?/Aries?.

But she grew up in the Lunar arena (ie, the solar system) so she would have known a lot OF the Lunar court.

"Can a Soul take over it's host body without transforming?"

Shazari: Yes; a parallel soul can take over its host at any time it feels necessary -- however, it won't take over its host willy-nilly -- having to do this too often leads to a case where the starseed will start to reject the host body; i.e. constantly taking over the host would kill your character (not desirable!).

-Shazari told me that in the Black Moon kingdom, there are several languages in use (though of course all cavaliers and senshis from there are assumed to speak the same one for simplicity). Any more details on that? Are they similar to some of our Earth's languages? Am I allowed to make up one of those languages to a degree (should I get a parallel senshi whose hobby is linguistics)?

Shazari: Happy to answer this here! This being a solar system with multiple populated planets, there are definitely many languages just as there are in our world. The assumption we make to keep things simple is that there's also a "common language" which all of the parallel senshi and cavaliers have learned/can speak (in addition to whatever other languages they speak) so they can all talk to their teammates. However, please feel not only welcome but encouraged to come up with whatever details you think help to flesh out your character/quest, as we're very welcoming to player contributions in making the parallels a diverse, interesting, and all-around awesome group to play in and play with. <3 In short, go right ahead!

When a senshi (awakened or unawakened) gets possessed by a Parallel senshi/cavalier, do they lose their original senshi identity (as in they can't transform into them anymore)?

Shazari: Yes. <3

I have a parallel question.

In regard to the eye-changing thing, does it only change when they are in a transformed state? Or does it remain the new color in the normal student form too?

Shazari: I knew I forgot to put that somewhere!

It only changes when they're in a transformed state. biggrin

I have a few Parallel Questions actually.

-For the names of the ghosts, if we were to give the ghosts actual names besides Parallel Cavalier/Senshi ___________ what language do those need to be in? Is it Gaelic? Greek? Could it be Irish? Just what language are you looking for the names to be in?

Shazari: Ah-hah -- this is one I've answered once or twice in the thread, but apparently not put in the Meet The or answered in here -- shame on me! So now I'll answer. Greek names -- in keeping with the parallels' theme. <3

-For the weapons, (idk if this is both Senshi and Cavalier or just Cavalier related) but what kinds of names are acceptable for these? Does it have to be in a certain language?

Shazari: English or Greek, if you name your parallel weapon. <3

-About the eye thing, is that a set color already? Or can we pick an eye color if say we wanted them to match with a color scheme idea we had for the character's outfit?

Shazari: You can choose the parallel's eye color -- I'll let you know if it's a design issue (such as "two different colored eyes"), but that wouldn't make or break the rest of a quest from going through, as it's strictly a visual element. <3

I think this has been answered before, but I`ve read through the six pages, and I don`t think so~.
I know that all cavaliers have rapiers, but do all parallel senshi have weapons of the sorts? Because I know some questers have gone have decided on their weapon of choice.
And based on their images, Queen Nehelenia has the scepter, Aphrodite with Heartbreaker, and Gaia with those...pots?
4laugh So, yeah, I was wondering if this is something that should be included in quests, or something that the staff decides?

Natsube: I'm not Shaz, and she should be the one answering this, but I'm fairly certain that Gaia's pot was put there because Shaz thought the pose was lacking something. Aphrodite is a captain and Selene the Princess, so I think normal rules apply? Gaia's pot is not really a weapon of any sort as she doesn't use it in her attack in any way, shape or form.

Shazari: I am Shaz, and I can answer this! Aphrodite is a captain, and in fact has a weapon/item -- her Heartseeker -- it's used in her attack (note its suspicious similarity to the Love-Me Chain). Selene's Crescent Wand is, like Chronos's longer staff, an item she can call to hand without needing to cast her attack, but otherwise isn't very functional as a weapon -- it hardly adds half a foot to her total reach, and isn't bladed or anything, not much different to running into battle with an ice cream scoop. Gaia's clay pot was indeed added for visual interest, and to suit the idea that all the White Lunar Court senshi had some form of item, so I wanted to mirror that with the Black Lunar Court. With the exceptions of the captain and vice-captain (Venus and Uranus, Aphrodite and Ouranos), the items the other parallels might have are accessories they might use in their attacks (see Gaia summoning and throwing her clay pot on the ground to cast her attack), but are not direct weapons. Sailor Ares also can't stab enemies in the eyes with her incense stick (sorry, Ares).

End result: No need to include this in your quest -- it'd be more helpful if you didn't. <3

I know that cavaliers are considered meta characters -- are the Parallel senshi and cavaliers meta as well? Ie, you can try for as many cavaliers/parallel senshi as you want, but am I correct to assume that once you acquire one, you can not acquire another one? ie, one meta per person includes members from the parallel court?

rosemilk: They do not! Meta souls only count if they were around in the actual series. You can have any non-canon Cavalier, but if you had, say, Jadeite, then you have a meta character.

Question time!

1 - For characters that have dual souls (i.e. Laocoon/Johnny, Hector/Jesse, etc) can the two communicate with each other? Like, for example, if Johnny's driving the body can Laocoon communicate mentally with him or is there no communication between the souls? (Like basically, are they aware enough of each other to recognize each other as separate entities sort of thing?) I know that they're meant to merge as time passes, but is there a point where they start as separate and then slowly just become the same (sort of) person?

rosemilk: Not Shaz, but as my understanding goes there CAN be some form of communication between the two. Jesse and Hector don't communicate because they're alike enough that they've just about fully merged, but two more disparate souls could communicate with each other.

Shazari: They can and do communicate. Imagine your body is a car that your mind is driving -- the parallel soul is sitting in the passenger seat offering directions. Occasionally they'll take the wheel and you'll be the passenger, but you're both awake and aware at the same time. <3

2 – Scenario-ish question. Say, Johnny goes out to patrol, changes to Laocoon, Laocoon gets the s**t beaten out of him, Laocoon returns home and changes back to Johnny. How much of the time between when he (Johnny) left to patrol and came home would he remember? Would he remember the fight as if he'd sort of been watching it on a TV (i.e. he had no part in it but he remembered) or would he just be like 'wtf why do I have all these bruises?'

rosemilk: He'd definitely remember it, and Laocoon doesn't necessarily take over every time Johnny transforms. It's not disassociative -- the Johnny personality doesn't go to sleep.

Shazari: See above. <3

3 – Specifically regarding the Parallel Court, what kinds of memories does the parallel soul have? Like, can they just recognize their Prince/Queen/other Parallel court dudes or do they have actual memories of the Mirror-verse Kingdom?

rosemilk: I'll let Shaz answer this one in more detail.

Shazari: Full memories of the mirrorverse kingdom -- their minds are just housed in different bodies now.

4 - Can Parallel court cavaliers/senshi recognize other transformed Parallels even if they haven't met in their current form? Like, if Laocoon were to run into Ares, say, for example, would he know it was her? Or would he just know she's a Parallel? (Or the totally other end of the spectrum, would he just not know her at all?)

rosemilk: I'll let Shaz answer this as well.

Shazari: Parallels only have resonance with their awakened partners and their awakened counterparts/counterpartners -- Aphrodite and Hector would recognize each other even untransformed, but Aphrodite and Aeneas wouldn't. Aphrodite and Hector would also 'recognize' Kunzite after a fashion (insofar as someone 'recognizes' a person they've never met), and Kunzite each of them, and if there were an awakened Sailor Venus this would all hold true as well.

I just want to know this for my own personal amusement.

If, say, Hector and Kunzite were to meet and high-five, would anything happen? Since they're two alternate-universe versions of each other, theoretically them being in the same place should be some kind of paradox. Is it negated by the fact that Hector is in the body of someone from the White Moon universe? I have heard many theories (division by zero, a rift in the spacetime continuum, absolutely nothing) but I want to know for sure.

codalion: Hector and Kunzite are not "alternate-universe versions of each other" so much as it just happens to be that they're both the Captain of their Prince's Cavaliers. Similarly, Endymion and Alexandros are actually not two versions of the same person -- they are two different people! We just joke around that Alex is "dark Endymion," but the fact is that the Parallel universe is in fact parallel, not divergent: they are two universes with two entirely different timelines and sets of people. It just so happens that there was a Prince of Earth and a Princess of the Moon in both universes, and they each had a Great Crystal and their own courts. <3

Shazari: My preferred joke is "Blondymion." biggrin Would like to add that the most likely reason Hector and Kunzite high-fiving would cause a rift in the space-time continuum is because this would require some sort of unreality wherein Miriam and Jesse would ever high-five each other. biggrin <3

Additionally, does the Zodiac Court exist in the Black Moon universe? I know we'll likely never see them, but I am curious--would Ares have memories of an alternate-world Virgo, or something. (Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought her back.)

codalion: There may very well indeed be parallel Zodiacs, but they're not part of gameplay and they wouldn't be familiar enough to the Lunars to be able to recognize the White Zodiacs. <3

Shazari: Presumably the Black Zodiac Court live somewhere out in deep space, defending from outside threats. While certain generations of the Black Moon Court and Black Earth Court have likely met them in past eras, the current generation probably have not. They'd know the concept and that there WERE Black Zodiac senshi, but not have met any personally. <3

Are Parallel cavaliers able to plug with another parallel senshi who they don't correspond with?
That sounds strange like...
Would it be possible for Glaucus to plug with Gaia instead of Ares?
And Parallel Cavaliers can only plug in to parallel senshi correct?

I've gotten a few answers in the main thread but I want to to know for sure.

rosemilk: After powwowing with Coda just to make sure: yes, it'd be possible for any Parallel Cavalier to bond with any Parallel senshi, just like any White Earth cavalier can bond with any White Earth senshi. White Earth cavs can actually bond with Zodiacs, too, but much like the reason that Parallels don't bond with just any old senshi it's tradition -- you bond with your senshi so help you God.

So yes, it's possible Glaucus could bond with Gaia, not Ares, but they'd have to have a pretty spectacular reason.

I have a cosmetic question, involving Parallels (maybe Zodiacs to an extent, but I don't know) - I figured I'd best ask specifically, since they are a different... class, I guess... than a typical Senshi/Negaversian:
1) Besides eye-color, how close a resemblance would past-life Parallels generally have appearance-wise to their modern-day soul holders? I'd like to think that they would be pretty close to each other, but thought I'd best ask first.

codalion: This is totally up to you! You can have them look totally different or uncannily alike; we often find that 'uncannily alike' is more fun for style and art purposes, but it's seriously up to you, since you're creating both the civilian character and the Parallel soul.

2) In the same vein, between the civilian forms and the powered forms as a Parallel, if their body structures were different between the past and now, what kind of build would the powered form now have?
Example: Parallel Different was placed into a tall beanstalk of a person in this life, but was shorter and a bit weightier in the past. How would this affect Parallel Different's looks in the modern-day, if at all?

codalion: Nothing officially changes in their transformed appearance except eye color -- otherwise, they retain their same body that they've had all their lives. However, I'm pretty sure stuff like hairstyle change/piercings could be worked out with Shaz if there was a good reason.

Do the Parallel Senshi have to have weapons similar to the ones of their corresponding Moon Court Senshi?

For example: Aphrodite has Heartseeker, which corresponds to the Venus Love-Me Chain.

Shazari: No, they don't have to. <3

Other Similar Question: What about Sailor Cronus and Sailor Hades? Their corresponding Senshi do, in fact, have official weapons outside of attacks.

Shazari: Cronus and Hades aren't required to have polearms. <3

I was re-reading Cavalier information, and I noticed there was a reference to senshi healing ability? Like... Cavaliers don't heal like senshi do. Do senshi heal faster than normal people?... does this extend to their human forms as well, or do they have to be in senshi form?

codalion: Cavaliers heal like senshi do: just not the Shitennou. <3 I'm pretty sure senshi healing extends to their normal forms.

Shazari: COROLLARY: Senshi who end up receiving proper medical treatment, such as Dani and Elke, will of course find that their treatment is based on assumptions that they heal at a normal human rate -- Dani who wears her cast for weeks more than she needs to (and then was SO MAD when she found out!), Elke who's in the hospital as long as they keep her there -- but things like Elke's infection can and do still definitely happen: their healing is accelerated, not perfected. <3

Do all cavaliers have the ability to toss show-stopping flora?

rosemilk: I am really hoping so. Canonically, Endymion and Alexandros both can -- it may just be that the Prince of Earth and the prince of the other Earth can do this amazing trick.

codalion: Alas, roses are a Prince of Earth thing alone. I know you're disappointed that Miriam cannot fling white roses at things instead of stab them, as surely if she could she would renounce her stabbing ways for a better tomorrow. We may never live to see that day.

When a Cavalier plugs into a Senshi, do they keep the effects even when they aren't powered up? Will a Cavalier that's plugged in suddenly become better in gym?

Shazari: Yes. biggrin