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Feel free to ask any questions about rp in this thread. If you don't feel like browsing the entire thread, at least read the list of common mistakes. Reading it will help you avoid the most common pitfalls.

Table of contents
Post 1
Common mistakes in roleplay
FAQ - Starting out
FAQ - Tricky roleplay terms

Post 2
FAQ - More about character creation
FAQ - All about your territory
FAQ - Growing and changing in roleplay

Post 3
FAQ - Death in Noctua
FAQ - Find your task
FAQ - Playing in a group

Post 4
FAQ - Sentinel senses
FAQ - Hunting and flying
FAQ - Tools and trinkets

Post 5
FAQ - Using NPCs
List of NPCs
Submit your own NPC


Common mistakes in roleplay

Don't make your first character too hard to play.
If it's extremely shy or hostile it might be difficult to interact with others. Roleplaying must be a give and take, and if your character is too hard to approach, it's likely that other players will start to avoid playing with you.

Sentinels are Nocturnal.
A common mistake is to have them active during the day without a plausible explanation. Sunlight will not be glistening on their feathers or on their shiny jewellery. Try moonlight if you want something to sparkle.

Sentinels don't change colours.
They're covered with feathers and will not blush, turn pale, become green around the gills or things like that. A guide to sentinel body-language is in the works, in the meantime just use your common sense.

Wings are not hands or arms.
Don't use them for "human" gestures, don't try to use them to pat friends/companions/fledglings, and don't try to clap them when you want to applaud someone. A sign of affection instead of a pat can be a quick, gentle preen, for example, and instead of applauding you can have your sentinel hoot his or her appreciation.

Skurri are almost always someone's companion.
Yes, they are supposed to be delicious and yes, most of the companion animals are types and sizes that sentinels normally eat, but if you keep hunting and catching only skurri, mus, parus etc. out in the wild, you're sooner or later going to have to answer to a very angry owner. Let us reiterate: Companion animals are not wild. Those that are available for eating are usually culls, delivered dead to the Central Distribution Platform by the keepers who bred them. If you run into a skurri in the woods, it belongs to someone. Hunt a normal squirrel instead. (And do read the required reading on companions.)

Sentinels are not hawks, they are stealth hunters.
They don't hunt their prey at breakneck speed, weaving between the ancient branches of Noctua's trees in hot pursuit. They don't catch songbirds in mid-air. They sit, watch, listen and wait, and when they have a prey in their sights - and the prey is perfectly unaware of them - they swoop down very, very silently and snatch the creature from its perch/grazing/gathering/whatever. No fancy flying, just silently effective killing.

Every task in Noctua does not have its own "enclave."
The Minders and the Mystics are to date the only tasks that have an enclave of their own. The Minders all gather in one place because it is the best and most efficient way to guard the next generation, and makes it a lot easier for the teachers to perform their task. The Mystics have a secluded enclave of their own because... well... they are mystic and like to keep to themselves.

More information about tasks and territories can be found in the other sections of the FAQ.

Don't play with yourself too much.
We know that it can be tempting to have all your Sentinels be bestest friends, but roleplay is much more fun if you involve other people too! If your Sentinel is a Minder and you manage to get an egg it might actually be better to leave the little one to another Minder. It might seem easier to plot things between your own Sentinels since you don't have to worry about godmoding, or about other people "messing up" your plans, but it can get very lonely not to include others.

On the other hand, don't start up a lot of new roleplays at once while you're still trying to get a grip of the setting.
Noctua is a complex and carefully constructed world, and owners and RP staff alike put down a lot of thought and love into it. As a result, there are some important rules and restrictions to consider when RPing (hence this guide here...), and we do and will expect players to heed to them. It is always fun to see a new player get excited about playing in Noctua, but if you don't feel too confident about what applies where, it's always better to start out small (1-2 RPs at a time, perhaps) - and ask a lot of questions. If RP staff has to run the boards up and down trying to keep track of all your RPs and there are noticeable mistakes in every one of them, you may be asked to take a time-out and read up on the world and the rules again.

Don't be afraid to ask questions!
Seriously, it is the main goal of all the staff of Noctua that everyone who wants to RP here can have a good time doing so. We will gladly answer any question you might have, and there is no such thing as being "too newbish." If there's still something that seems unclear to you after reading this guide here, feel free to post in this thread or send a PM to the Herald about it. Or ask in the shop thread - the regulars are often just as eager to help you out.

Ye Olde FAQ - starting out

I want to RP my new Sentinel. How do I start?
First you need to come up with a character concept and fill out the RP form, found here. Post it in this thread and wait for the RP-staff to edit your post with their response. It could be approved right away, but usually there are some small mistakes or unclear parts to correct. We might ask you to change something that doesn't fit in the world of Noctua, to change something that might be problematic about your character or to fill in something you forgot to add in the first place. If you ask for it we could also give you suggestions on how to flesh out or develop your character, or to improve your writing. If you don't want to get public feedback you can post it directly in the submission thread and you will get basic feedback PMed to you.

I'm not sure what I should put in the character form... Help?
For the most part you should only write things that could be commonly known about your character IC. The personality and history are usually the biggest parts of the form, but they don't have to be huge. A few paragraphs can be more effective than to write a wall of text. Fledglings don't need much of a history for example, since they will have plenty of time to expand on it as they grow and RP.

You don't have to include everything your character has ever done, or write a extremely extensive personality. Sometimes a character might have secrets or character traits that could be abused by other characters in RP and those might be better left out to avoid the tempting others to metagame. If you want to discuss a character trait or a part of the history that you are not sure about you can PM the Herald.

As an example: if your Sentinel is very easily manipulated if another character pushes the right buttons you might not want to describe exactly how he or she could best be manipulated.

My Sentinel is lonely, can I make up a NPC for it to interact with before I try to play with other players?
Sure, but if we notice you're playing that NPC too frequently we will ask you to send in an RP form and make it an official RP-only Sentinel.

Can I let a NPC Minder take care of my egg or hatchling?
Um... Sure... But you can't play that NPC until your chick has grown into a fledgling and is RP approved.

But I've seen other players use NPCs to drop off their eggs/hatchlings at a minder enclave. How come?
They must have asked and recieved permission from the Herald to do so. Besides, it is one thing to play a dropping-off for a few posts, and another to regularly RP a minder that is supposed to be an NPC. If that's what you feel that you want to do, why not try to get the minder as a real character instead?

How do I set up an RP for my Sentinel?
You can join an existing roleplay thread in The Forest if it's marked as [OPEN] but if it has more than a few posts it's polite to ask first. You can also ask another player if they want to play with you, or start a thread in the Message Outpost to ask for someone to play with or plan plots for your character. You can also check this thread to see if there are any Micro Plots planned for the near future.


Ye Olde FAQ - tricky roleplay terms

What is metagaming and why is it bad?
Metagaming is when you let what YOU know OOC affect how your character behaves IC. This could give your character unfair advantages and make RP less fun for others.

In general, metagaming can be divided into two main categories. The first, and most obvious, is when a player has their character be more aware of other IC events than they should be. A good example of this is when a character is somehow well-informed of events that happened in a private RP on the other side of the forest. The second, and much harder to avoid, is when a player has a character with unrealistic knowledge for their position/age/experience. The world of Noctua is not a modern world, after all, so a Sentinel with knowledge of advanced mathematics is extremely unlikely.

More simply put, a player is metagaming when they use knowledge that is not available to their character in order to change the way they play their character - usually to give them an advantage. It refers to any gaps between player knowledge and character knowledge which the player acts upon. This is very strongly discouraged in Noctua

What's this "Godmoding" thing, and why is it forbidden?
Godmoding is when one player dictates what everyone else's characters do, not just by making his character try to convince them, but by actually typing up what they do. In other words, he enters God-mode. This is forbidden because it is rude to the players whose characters are being controlled, and the only one who's having fun is the Godmoder.

I think I need some examples...
When you are involved in an RP, you can only control the actions of your own character. You can talk TO or ABOUT someone else's character, but you may not put words in their beaks, or perform their actions.
To simplify, this is considered god-moding, and it's NOT okay:


This might take a little more time, but it is much more respectful towards Dirtfeather's player:


Oh, okay... So then, what's "powergaming"?
Powergaming is related to godmoding, but instead of trying to control what other people do, the powergamer's characters seem to be immune to everything other players do. In fact, nothing bad seems to happen to them at all!

A direct form of powergaming is when a player refuses to let another characters actions affect their character. Like this:





Sure, it's up to Mudbeak's player to decide if Dirtfeather's attempt to grab her tailfeathers succeeded, but if Mudbeak always manages to get away the roleplay will get boring quickly.

Indirect powergaming is more about instantly reversing any bad things that happens to the character in roleplay. Caught out in the rain? The powergamer will find a luxurious shelter instantly. Injured or sick? The powergamer will stumble upon a plant that cures anything or just happen to bump into the most skilled medic in the forest.

Powergaming is a bit more sneaky than godmoding, and the player might not even be aware that they do it.

Oh, I see! Is twinking the same thing or is it something else?
Well, yes and no. Twinking is related to godmoding and powerplaying, but the difference is that the twink isn't trying to control other people's characters, or the environment - He or she is instead trying to make their own character a lot more awesome than everybody else's right from the beginning.

Twinking happens when the character is created, before it even starts to play. It might be a Crafter who is retired from being an Elite, but still does the odd job for them now and then. Or a non combattant Artisan that somehow manages to hold an awesome and big territory in Deep woods, and is working on finding new herbal cures in his free time.

The result is more often than not a Mary Sue.

Um... Mary Sue?
In fanfiction or fiction, a Mary Sue, or the male version Gary Stu, is the author inserting a representation of themselves (who is often quite perfect and flawless) into the story. In roleplay it's the player creating their perfect, infallible dream character, who is everything they wish that they could be. As a Sentinel, they are nicer, stronger and better looking than other Sentinels, but are still always kind at heart and loved by everyone that matters. They never make any mistakes, and can't ever be fooled or tricked by anyone. Sounds good? It's not. A character without any believable flaws becomes a cardboard-cutout personality that will not be fun to play against, and it will probably get boring to play as well, eventually.

For example, it could be a Crafter who has secretly served with the Elites and can mix herbs into medicines - oh, and it can probably figure out the lost secret behind making steel, given enough time and a dramatic opportunity. However, if your character suddenly is just as good at fighting as any combatant and flies faster than any Scout despite the fact that they've been a Keeper all their life, then you have a problem.

The Mary Sue character does not let little things like rules, limitations or plausibility get in the way of a chance to look important or impress someone. The Mary Sue is thereby often twinked, and since it's by definition played as being better than everyone else, there's a big risk for powerplaying or even godmoding.

Playing in this manner is not allowed because it is as unfair to the other players as godmoding is, and for pretty much the same reason as twinking is not allowed: those who try to play within the limitations of their task/species/world context/circumstances will pretty quickly grow tired of constantly being showed up by Glitterfeather Awesomewing who can do everything better than everyone else.

As you can see all these terms are related, but if you try to remember that roleplaying is about both giving and taking, you should do fine in Noctua.

Ye Olde FAQ - death in Noctua

What? My Sentinel can die?
Yes, IC actions will have IC consequences. If your Sentinel or its companion take stupid risks it might die or get injured. But don’t worry, no player can kill your Sentinel or Companion against your will.

Oh, ok. So there’s no real risk for my babies then?
Not in regular everyday roleplay, unless your Sentinel tries to take out a band of Spectres or something equally stupid. In certain events there will be a risk of dying, and in such events minor injuries might be inflicted without consent. Major injuries and death will always need to be approved by the player, unless the player takes an absolutely ridiculous risk without clearing it with the Herald first.

How do Sentinels deal with grief and death?
Sentinels tend to have very simple burial ceremonies - the body is cleaned up, lowered to the ground using combined Will or a pulley device, and left for the scavengers. The body itself isn't anything to be attached to, but it's also not something that should be removed from the natural cycle of the forest.

Could they take a feather or something from the body as a memento or would that be weird?
Not at all, it's common for close family members or a mate to take the flight feathers as a memento, and some very old-fashioned sentinels would even use them to replace their own broken feathers as a sign of respect and mourning. An extremely uncommon/ancient/extreme show of grief would be to take the flight feathers of the deceased, cut your own, and imp your wings with their entire set. That would be something that isn't really done much at all these days, but during the wars it was a sign of respect for a fallen comrade.

Wait a minute... Imping?
Imping = Grafting new feathers onto the wing to repair damage. This task is typically performed by the Featherstylers (kinda like how a hairdresser will do trims as well as fancy up-dos). Impers imp for day-to-day flight and war-readiness, Featherstylers imp for fashion. Most Sentinels keep a set or two of their own moulted primaries for imping use if they break a flight feather. A good proportion of them could imp their own feathers if need be, but it wouldn't be as good as going to see a professional - kinda like how we can cut our own hair.

Using someone else's feather would put you off-balance and have a negative impact on your flight. That's why the mourning imping isn't done lightly.

Ye Olde FAQ - Finding your task

My Sentinel needs to find a crafter/artisan/keeper/other. Is there a special place I should go to find one?
Most Sentinels value their privacy, and are very disinclined to bundle together into enclaves and such. If you want the help of an Artisan, an Apothecary or a Crafter etc., you're going to have to travel around to the individual Sentinel's territory and ask them if they can help you, or tell you about a colleague who can.

OOCly, you can go through the approved character forms to try to find a suitable Sentinel and try to contact their player, or post an ad in the Message Outpost, or use an NPC (played by the Herald).

So there's nothing like a mall where I can go to get food or buy a companion?
The Keepers would NOT gather together in a single place like that - first of all because some companions will eat the others given half a chance, but also because it would become a lot harder to keep certain bloodlines pure - and to keep your trade secrets within the family.

The Gatherers and Hunters all take their surplus to the Central Distribution Platform - NOT to different enclaves - from where the food is redistributed under supervision of the Matron. A Sentinel could go to the platform to ask for food, but most support tasks will get what they need delivered to them. Other tasks can ask for food too, but if they dip into the clan stores too often they will be encouraged to try another task that can support them better. A lousy bard or artisan would have to consider a career change if they failed to feed themselves.

I want to RP my bard, does he or she have to perform at the Crownleaf theatre?
No, not at all. Bards carry out their tasks in many different ways and they do not have to go to the theatre to work. The Bard is free to do as he will, when he will, and if he will. It is generally expected, however, that a Bard will provide entertainment wherever he goes.

Some bards will fly around and work as travelling storytellers while others might find their place entertaining the young in the Minder enclaves.

How will my artisan/apothecary/crafter/other non-combatant sell their wares and services? Do they open up a shop somewhere?
If they are good enough at what they do their customers might seek them out in their territory. Sentinels who are new at their task and who haven't built up a reputation yet might instead travel around to find likely customers. A bigger event when a lot of Sentinels get together is also a good way to get in contact with potential customers.

So what's up with these new 'Specialist' tasks, like Featherstyler and Skydancer? I want my character to be one!
That's great! Now are you willing to do the work required to earn it? The specialist tasks are not something that will be given away lightly - they aren't as common and they are RP-earned and RP-required. In a sense, a specialist task is a reward for both your IC and OOC dedication and skill. If you feel that your Sentinel is ready for a 'promotion' then PM the Herald to discuss it.

Ye Olde FAQ - playing in a group

The theatre looks neat... can I join the Brigadier's Bards too?
You'll have to ask the members, and you will most likely have to roleplay your entry into the bard group since it's a roleplay heavy group. Inactive members will also be cleared from time to time so don't join just to get groupies. (unless you plan to rp it wink )

I'm not that fond of bards, can I start a different group with my Sentinel instead?
Err... Sure, but it won't be much of a group without other Sentinels so make sure you invite other players too. Feel free to create a hunting party, a group of minders or any other group you'd like.

Can I start another bard group?
Sure, go ahead.

Ye Olde FAQ - Using NPCs

So, can I just dream up a NPC for my Sentinel to interact with?
Sure, as long as the NPC belongs to one of the common types and works with one of the general tasks. For Keepers we will ask you to only create NPCs that breed common companions. But remember that we might ask you to send in a RP form for the character if we notice that you play a certain NPC too much.

Okay, but how much is too much?
Well... If the NPC is given more space than your regular character in a single RP or if you use the same NPC in several different RPs you're using it too much.

Oh, what if I need an aberrant NPC or one with a restricted or specialist task, or one that breeds a rare or uncommon companion?
Ping a PM to the Herald or check if there's a suitable Sentinel in the official list.

So I can just pick one of the official NPCs to use for whatever I want?
Pretty much, but there are some additional rules for these NPCs.

- Your Sentinel can't be related to one of the official NPCs.
- Your Sentinel can't be mated to or best friends with one of the official NPCs.
- The official NPCs can't be made into real characters.
- If you just want to mention the meeting with the NPC in casual roleplay there are no further restrictions.
- If the RP will be just your character interacting with the NPC it counts as a solo-RP and you should keep it in your territory thread. It's ok to godmod the NPCs in a solo-RP, within reason off course. PM the Herald if you have any questions.
- If you want a longer, more involved RP with one of these NPCs you should PM the Herald to discuss what you'd like to do. It's possible that a staff member has the time to play the part as the NPC with you.
- If a NPC you've seen around is not on this list, you can't play with it. It might be one of the Staff NPCs (like Sleet, The Brigadier and The Matron) and those are off limits. Or it might be a NPC another player came up with and then it's polite to ask them before you do anything with their creation.

Example on proper use of the official NPCs:


Ye olde list of NPCs
Need to see an artisan or a crafter? Or is your fledgling cold and lonely? If you have tried to find someone to help in the Message Outpost without luck you can use a NPC. This is a list of established NPCs that can be used by anyone when they need to do business with a certain profession.

Artisans
Poppy - Female Deep Woods Artisan.
A bit of a neat freak, and wouldn't be caught dead with paint splattered feathers. Focuses on accents and doesn't do full body work. She'd rather create the perfect wing bar pattern or enhance an already beautiful Sentinel using a few accents. Less is more according to Poppy, and she mostly follows her own advice in her own dye jobs.

Strangedye - Male ??? Artisan
Strangedye is covered in dye from ear tufts to talons and it's impossible to tell what type he is under all that dye. He changes his outrageous dye job frequently and goes by his nickname Strangedye since no one seems to remember his real name. He's a free spirit and a very open minded fellow who wouldn't mind helping an aberrant. The latest Summer Strut was hosted by him and the many rumours surrounding it scored him more than a few new customers...

Apothecaries
Foxglove - Male Shadow Apothecary
Big for a shadow. Specializes in supplying Medics but can usually provide some very basic dye ingredients too. He prefers keeper raised food since it tends to be fatter... Hide your Skurri!

Hunters
Swiftclaw - Female Wildtype Hunter
A tough but kind female with an extraordinary talent for hunting. She can be usually found in the Not-Cold Forest in the company of one or two apprentices. In spite of her pure Wildtype lineage, she is openly acceptant of mixed-type aberrants (actually, rumors say she is being courted by a certain Deep Woods gentleman).

Keepers
Seabreeze – Female Ghost Mus Keeper
A Mus keeper who breeds for color despite the fact that most of her customers will cover their new companion in dye... She has a colorful horde of mus and nothing pleases her more than to find a new color variation. Hardly the sentimental type, she is usually accompanied by a few culls (food for the journey) and unlike anything implied by her name, she’s not particularly fond of water of any kind.

Scarletdawn – Male Wildtype Chirop Keeper
A reddish-brown Wildtype who lives near a large cave in the Dark Sparkle Mountains. He likes to take long night flights surrounded by some of his favorite chirops and is known amongst his peers as an expert in Chirop breeding.

Fanfeather - Male Wildtype Parus Keeper
He breeds and trains Parus, mainly for companionship. Many fledglings get their first companion from him, but unfortunately he's not very picky with what he puts on the market. His companions are not always the smartest or the best singers around.

Snagtalon - Female Aberrant Waral Keeper
Grumpy, short-tempered, impatient. Respects those as tough-natured as she is. Short of words. Very proud of her bloodlines. Has a known distaste for stupid companions.

Roguefeather - Male Wildtype Skurri keeper
A rather tall male (even by wildtype standards), who breeds skurri for their meat. His charges seem to have more fat and less fur, making them highly desirable. Even though he was never a very friendly character to begin with, because of the scarcity of prey his pride and arrogance have made him downright obnoxious.

Flightjoy - Female Ghost Alcyon Keeper
A beautiful long-tufted lady with a passion for fishing. She lives near the lake with her flock. In her youth she was known to play cruel games with her many suitors, but never took a mate. When she started to focus more on her keeping and less on males there were rumours about an "accidental" clutch, and some rumour mongers are still spreading this gossip around.

Wicker - Male Wildtype Martes Keeper
This skinny fellow breeds good quality companion- and hunting-Martes, but also keeps a few “experimental” lines as a pet project. It’s well known that he is willing to trade favours for live and healthy wild weasels and martens, but so far he has had little luck in incorporating them in his bloodlines. His territory south of Deep Woods is nearly big enough to provide enough food for his horde... But at least he won't have to worry too much about challengers...

Medics
Beryl and Jasper – Deep Woods Medics
Young siblings (a female and male born from the same clutch) who have strayed from the crafter profession chosen by most of their family in order to perfect themselves in the art of medicine. Though they are unmistakably gifted, their fiery tempers and sarcastic humor seem to keep the less injured at bay. They work, hunt and live together showing an unusual level of co-dependence, waiting for the day a mate breaks them apart.

Minders
Ivy - Female Mist Minder
Talks quickly. Tends to get twitchy when she is nervous, and she's often nervous when she doesn't know what her charges are up to. Watchful, good at locating and preventing trouble. Afraid of disease and not tolerant with genetic aberrants. Mixed aberrants are fine, but she will fuss over them and expect them to be sickly.

Minders of the Sunset Minder Enclave
(The enclave where Basil and Bushfire were sent to serve their punishment in Old Blood, see "Locations" further down for more info)
Raspberry - Female Shadow Minder
Warm and motherly, this Shadow is fiercely loyal and has quite the temper. You won't notice most of the days, but those who manage to get on her bad side or speak ill of her wards will face the business end of her claws. Some claim that Raspberry's own mother was an aberrant freak, but if they say it to her face they're pretty much begging to be maimed.

Cerise - Female Wildtype Minder
She really dislikes "modern" or "artistic" names and prefers proper and traditional berry, flower or perhaps plant-related names. She tries to re-name new arrivals to something "proper" if she can get away with it. Usually she can't, and being voted down always makes her grumpy. She has been a minder for a very long time and have worked at several other enclaves before she came to this one.

Hador - Male Aberrant Minder
This young Minder was raised by Raspberry after being handed around to a lot of different minders who didn't want to take in an aberrant chick for too long. He is very loyal to Raspberry and the Sunset Minder Enclave and he adores young chicks. Hador enjoys coming up with weird names for his charges just to see Cerise cringe.

He's not too bad looking with his short masculine tufts, but the ladies he has wooed were mostly unimpressed because of his mixed lineage. Before he came to the enclave he managed to win a nice little territory in Deep Woods, but he could only hold onto it for a little more than a moon before a stronger male kicked him out. That was when he decided to join Raspberry in her new enclave in the south.

Teachers
Barkbeak - Male Deep Woods Teacher
A class-style teacher who is in high demand for teaching fledgling basics and advanced classes to a select few. He focuses on the combatant tasks, especially Scouts and Rangers, and his graduates have a high acceptance rate.

Submit your own NPC
Have you made a NPC you want to share and let others use too? Then fill in this form. By doing this you agree that the NPC can never be made into a real character in Noctua, and that other players might use it in ways you might not have thought of. Staff reserves the right to refuse or change NPCs that don't fit the setting. If you feel too attached to the character - don't submit it here!