Post by Igor on Jul 21, 2017 15:15:35 GMT -6
TIME SYSTEM
On Alter-Ego™, we of the Velvet Room have taken great care to fabricate a time management system that intends to recapture the necessity and weight of the choices one would make in the Persona video games.
Please take note that this particular implementation, as with all of the systems and features we provide to our guests, is always subject to any additions, improvements, or alterations as they are needed; any changes made in this way will be addressed in a site-wide notification.
Upon a character's acceptance into the Velvet Room's registry, all guests are required to keep a Journal of their experiences in New York City; we have provided a template to use for this very purpose.
Each individual entry in a character's Journal is composed of seven tabs, for each day of a full calendar week, and every day is then further divided into three separate slots: Morning, Day, and Night.
These slots, when looked at from a combined angle, represent the free time a character has at their disposal so that they may engage in a variety of activities, whether that is to attend morning classes at school, perform part-time work for income, pursuing leisurely pastimes, and so forth; more details about each of these has been appended below.
While it is required for all of our guests to keep a running track of their Journals at all times, it is not necessary to actually roleplay a thread specifically for the purposes of filling every time slot. One might simply choose to insert a set of brackets or an asterisk that briefly describes the event in question.
For example, rather than appending a link to a thread where your character might simply be spending some personal time with a nondescript background character they may know, or to work a part-time job that requires the character to perform menial tasks for long periods, you might simply put a note about the task in the time slot that it takes place.
If one prefers to fill in their time slots using the "short-hand method", we ask that you please insert a post in our Notification Thread to have either myself or an attendant of the Velvet Room apply any appropriate rewards, wages, and other acquired bonuses in a timely fashion.
The plot of Alter-Ego™ is divided into chapters, referred to henceforth as "arcs", that each consist of a determined number of days representing the amount of free time a character is able to spend within the game's setting before the start of the established arc's climax.
It must be noted that any time slots that have yet to be filled in before the character reaches the climax's established deadline cannot be filled in at a later date; all characters within the game's environment will be automatically jumped forward to the date of the climax and progress their own stories from there.
Our current story arc, for example, provides you with a total of eighteen days in-game to grow and establish your character however you like before the start of the arc's climax, by which point your character must fast-forward to the climax's determined date.
Characters may uncover important pieces of information related to the story's current arc; if they are certain they have learned something relevant, they may report their findings to myself or one of the Velvet Room's other attendants by tagging us in the thread. A prompt will then be posted to indicate whether or not the character has discovered something crucial; only the individual with the correct piece of data will be informed so.
What the character chooses to do with this information is, ultimately, up to them: they may either share it with those they know, or they could simply withhold it for their own reasons. We sincerely wish for it to be within your best interests to think of how your choices will influence the progression of the story.
At the end of every arc, an announcement will be made for characters to finish any threads associated with the arc before a site-wide cleanup occurs on a determined date — all Journals will be compiled into a running summary of events as they have occurred throughout the course of the story, and are then wiped clean, allowing guests to compile a brand new list of their character's experiences to repeat this process again.
Education is a requirement for many characters here, specifically those between the ages of ten and eighteen, as it is mandatory for children to attend school from Monday to Friday in American society as part of their morning routine.
Guests who roleplay a character between these ages must record their attendance within their Journals in each time slot marked "Morning". The only exception to this is if the day in question is one the character is not required to attend school for, such as a weekend (Saturday or Sunday), a holiday, or an observed day such as Memorial Day.
Attending school provides a character with several opportunities to raise their social parameter scores by participating in several extracurricular clubs or activities, improve their academic prowess or social standing by earning high grades, or learn information that might even prove crucial at a later point.
If a character is old and capable enough, they might just find themselves working for an income in their spare time. Apart from providing the obvious benefit of additional spending money, jobs also give characters many chances to develop themselves socially, and expands their awareness of how to adapt and survive the hustle and bustle of city living.
Characters who are above the age of sixteen but younger than eighteen are only permitted to have a single part-time job if they are also enrolled in school, and can only perform these jobs on time slots marked "Day" or "Night". Those above the age of eighteen may have two part-time jobs if they wish, but cannot work any more than two.
Some jobs will require the character to meet specific criteria before they can be taken on, such as the knowledge to translate books in different languages or the charm necessary to sell a certain brand of products.
Characters may only work seven hours per day, up to the maximum number of hours their particular job will allow them to contribute on a weekly basis. The hourly rate for each job varies depending on the work being performed, of course.
Guests may choose to either manually type out their character's encounter at their chosen place of employment, with every set of 100 words equating to a full hour of work, or they can choose to "automatically work" by recording such in their Journal pages; in picking this option, any wages earned are halved and no social parameter points will be gained.
Choosing to manually type out your character's job performance will net them between one to three points towards their chosen job's associated social parameter, in addition to their normal earned wages. There are also plenty of opportunities to find items, additional money, or even discover critical pieces of information that could advance the story.
Although the passage of time within the game's world is regulated and monitored with round-the-clock diligence, there is no need to fret; we of the Velvet Room are fully aware of the differences between each individual's unique perception of time and are willing to provide accommodations for any unresolved or unintentional continuity issues when and if we are able to.
We do feel it is necessary to remind you once more of the full importance behind your choices; while the significance of your character's personal growth is equally as crucial, how they interact with others and make their impact in the game's world may create a ripple effect that could change the very way it operates and responds to these choices.
For better, or worse.
Please take note that this particular implementation, as with all of the systems and features we provide to our guests, is always subject to any additions, improvements, or alterations as they are needed; any changes made in this way will be addressed in a site-wide notification.
journals
Upon a character's acceptance into the Velvet Room's registry, all guests are required to keep a Journal of their experiences in New York City; we have provided a template to use for this very purpose.
Each individual entry in a character's Journal is composed of seven tabs, for each day of a full calendar week, and every day is then further divided into three separate slots: Morning, Day, and Night.
These slots, when looked at from a combined angle, represent the free time a character has at their disposal so that they may engage in a variety of activities, whether that is to attend morning classes at school, perform part-time work for income, pursuing leisurely pastimes, and so forth; more details about each of these has been appended below.
While it is required for all of our guests to keep a running track of their Journals at all times, it is not necessary to actually roleplay a thread specifically for the purposes of filling every time slot. One might simply choose to insert a set of brackets or an asterisk that briefly describes the event in question.
For example, rather than appending a link to a thread where your character might simply be spending some personal time with a nondescript background character they may know, or to work a part-time job that requires the character to perform menial tasks for long periods, you might simply put a note about the task in the time slot that it takes place.
If one prefers to fill in their time slots using the "short-hand method", we ask that you please insert a post in our Notification Thread to have either myself or an attendant of the Velvet Room apply any appropriate rewards, wages, and other acquired bonuses in a timely fashion.
advancing the story
The plot of Alter-Ego™ is divided into chapters, referred to henceforth as "arcs", that each consist of a determined number of days representing the amount of free time a character is able to spend within the game's setting before the start of the established arc's climax.
It must be noted that any time slots that have yet to be filled in before the character reaches the climax's established deadline cannot be filled in at a later date; all characters within the game's environment will be automatically jumped forward to the date of the climax and progress their own stories from there.
Our current story arc, for example, provides you with a total of eighteen days in-game to grow and establish your character however you like before the start of the arc's climax, by which point your character must fast-forward to the climax's determined date.
Characters may uncover important pieces of information related to the story's current arc; if they are certain they have learned something relevant, they may report their findings to myself or one of the Velvet Room's other attendants by tagging us in the thread. A prompt will then be posted to indicate whether or not the character has discovered something crucial; only the individual with the correct piece of data will be informed so.
What the character chooses to do with this information is, ultimately, up to them: they may either share it with those they know, or they could simply withhold it for their own reasons. We sincerely wish for it to be within your best interests to think of how your choices will influence the progression of the story.
At the end of every arc, an announcement will be made for characters to finish any threads associated with the arc before a site-wide cleanup occurs on a determined date — all Journals will be compiled into a running summary of events as they have occurred throughout the course of the story, and are then wiped clean, allowing guests to compile a brand new list of their character's experiences to repeat this process again.
attending school
Education is a requirement for many characters here, specifically those between the ages of ten and eighteen, as it is mandatory for children to attend school from Monday to Friday in American society as part of their morning routine.
Guests who roleplay a character between these ages must record their attendance within their Journals in each time slot marked "Morning". The only exception to this is if the day in question is one the character is not required to attend school for, such as a weekend (Saturday or Sunday), a holiday, or an observed day such as Memorial Day.
Attending school provides a character with several opportunities to raise their social parameter scores by participating in several extracurricular clubs or activities, improve their academic prowess or social standing by earning high grades, or learn information that might even prove crucial at a later point.
earning income
If a character is old and capable enough, they might just find themselves working for an income in their spare time. Apart from providing the obvious benefit of additional spending money, jobs also give characters many chances to develop themselves socially, and expands their awareness of how to adapt and survive the hustle and bustle of city living.
Characters who are above the age of sixteen but younger than eighteen are only permitted to have a single part-time job if they are also enrolled in school, and can only perform these jobs on time slots marked "Day" or "Night". Those above the age of eighteen may have two part-time jobs if they wish, but cannot work any more than two.
Some jobs will require the character to meet specific criteria before they can be taken on, such as the knowledge to translate books in different languages or the charm necessary to sell a certain brand of products.
Characters may only work seven hours per day, up to the maximum number of hours their particular job will allow them to contribute on a weekly basis. The hourly rate for each job varies depending on the work being performed, of course.
Guests may choose to either manually type out their character's encounter at their chosen place of employment, with every set of 100 words equating to a full hour of work, or they can choose to "automatically work" by recording such in their Journal pages; in picking this option, any wages earned are halved and no social parameter points will be gained.
Choosing to manually type out your character's job performance will net them between one to three points towards their chosen job's associated social parameter, in addition to their normal earned wages. There are also plenty of opportunities to find items, additional money, or even discover critical pieces of information that could advance the story.
take your time
Although the passage of time within the game's world is regulated and monitored with round-the-clock diligence, there is no need to fret; we of the Velvet Room are fully aware of the differences between each individual's unique perception of time and are willing to provide accommodations for any unresolved or unintentional continuity issues when and if we are able to.
We do feel it is necessary to remind you once more of the full importance behind your choices; while the significance of your character's personal growth is equally as crucial, how they interact with others and make their impact in the game's world may create a ripple effect that could change the very way it operates and responds to these choices.
For better, or worse.
