FAQ / PREMISE

[sticksandbonesmods]

FAQ & PREMISE

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STICKS AND BONES

Perhaps you were simply going about your day, or perhaps you were in the middle of some life-changing fight, staring down death. Perhaps you're already dead. Either way, you hear a voice whispering somewhere in the back of your mind: "Do you want to play with me?"

It does not wait for an answer.

You wake up in the center of a small settlement in a dark, dreary forest. An absurdly large turtle sits beside a warm-looking red tent by the well, and the general store’s lights shine bright no matter the time of day or night. A walled-off manor peers out of the fog, a gravesite just before it. You are not the first to arrive here, and you will not be the last — and should you attempt to leave, the fog surrounding the area stops you if one of the residents doesn’t. After all, toys don’t get to decide when they’re done.

STICKS AND BONES is a panfandom jamjar run by Amity (amity_rose) and Wolfie (wolfchan). Within a nameless forest, characters will take up residence in the settlement of Aldric's Grove and seek out answers as to what happened, why it was abandoned and how the forest has so much power. Events will be within the settlement or in the form of the woods opening up to invite characters to explore... for better or worse.

Any and all updates will be made on the ooc coms, as well as announced on the mod plurk, sticksandbones. As a general warning, this game can and will include reincarnation, child death, body horror, emotional & physical abuse (from a supernatural entity toward player characters), possession, and supernatural parasitism towards humans and animals alike, among other potentially upsetting content. All instances of this will be marked in the header when used in the game.

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MECHANICS

WHEN ARE APPLICATIONS PROCESSED?

Apps are always open and are processed as soon as possible.

HOW ARE APPLICATIONS HANDLED? WHO CAN APPLY?

Anyone can apply at this time without an invitation. This may be subject to change at a later date should we go invite-only.

That said, as we want to keep our small community drama-free and safe for all players, we maintain the right to reject anyone from joining for any reason, including if we don’t think you would mesh well with the playerbase or setting. It is very important to the mod team to keep the environment curated so that everyone feels safe and welcome. We will examine each application on a case by case basis and use our best judgment, and we take player conflicts of interest very seriously. While this may sound harsh, this is to ensure that Sticks & Bones is, as stated, drama-free and safe.

HOW ARE TRIGGER WARNINGS HANDLED?

The mod team takes trigger warnings extremely seriously. As stated above, Sticks & Bones includes your “standard” horror game tropes, including: reincarnation, child death, body horror, emotional & physical abuse, possession, and supernatural parasitism. It will also include additional triggers such as gore and violence. Other trigger warnings are tagged on a case-by-case basis on the event logs before the prompts begin.

In the case of the players, we ask that all players be mindful of triggers — please have personal triggers outlined in your permissions posts, and any potential character triggers as well so that players know what they can expect. We have an expectation that these player permission posts will be read and honoured, and that all players put appropriate content warnings in subject lines both in IC Inboxes and the main comm. A good rule of thumb is that if you’re not sure, tag it.

In a case where trigger warnings are not used on an event post or something goes missed, we ask that the players contact us immediately so it can be rectified. In threads between players, all major triggers should be cw’d appropriately. We understand that everyone here is human and that mistakes can and will happen, and that’s okay. However, players who blatantly disrespect the comfort of other players by refusing to trigger warn, who ignore permissions posts, and who believe that trigger warnings do not matter, will be swept and banned from the game. If the mods do not believe a full ban is necessary but issues arise, we will ask all involved players to save and delete their thread comments up to the point where the content warning needs to be posted, and allow reposting from there.

WHAT’S THE ACTIVITY REQUIREMENT?

Activity checks are due at the end of the month but can be put in at any time. They require two threads with two different characters, with a minimum of five comments each. Strikes are permitted, and more information is available on the activity check page and bonus activity page.

WHAT KIND OF CHARACTERS ARE ALLOWED?

Canon characters, original characters, tabletop OCs and silent protagonists are allowed. Canon AUs or characters from canons with multiple adaptations are allowed, but direct doubles are not. For example, we would only allow two Noah Ebalons if they were different paths (Liberator and Celestia rather than Liberator and Liberator).

Customizable characters will have one of each permitted, but WoLs will not be allowed. Reality or dimension-traveling characters are also allowed, though their abilities would be cut off within the game.

Fandom-based original characters are permitted so long as they have no major connection to a canon character — the main character's sibling wouldn't cut it, but someone who attends their school would. CRAU is also allowed, but with a limit of one game history. The sole exception to this is if the games are directly linked, such as Deerington and Deer County, or multi-round murdergames. Otherwise, if you have stacked CRAU, please use the first game.

As a note, there is an age cap of 14 and older.

At this time, Nene Yashiro from Toilet-Bound Hanako-Kun, and Elsword (Genesis) from Elsword are not appable characters for plot reasons.

IS THERE A CAST CAP?

Not at this time.

IS THERE A CHARACTER OR PLAYER CAP?

As of August 2023, players are capped at 25.

As of March 2025, players may app up to 4 characters total- though we must stress that they cannot app 4 at once- and should they consistently meet AC and prove they are active within the game without skirting AC or meeting the bare minimums, players may app a 5th character. Players are also permitted to play from the same canon so long as their characters do not have overlapping interactions or are particularly close to one another.

WHAT'S THE TIME SCALE LOOK LIKE?

Time within the forest is nebulous at best — though time passes, and the sun rises and sets, and the moon has its phases, it's hard for characters to keep track of how many have passed and how long they've been in the woods. Major events like holidays or birthdays are best guessed based on the vibe, especially since sometimes you get three full moons in a row and then a new moon.

CAN WE CANON UPDATE?

Yes. Canon updates can be purchased on the Bonus AC page.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A CHARACTER DROPS?

Dropped characters will disappear from the Grove without a trace and be unable to be found by remaining characters. They will have functionally died, though the cause of death may be somewhat nebulous — they could have been eaten by something, drowned in the ocean, or what-have-you. On our drop form, we have a field indicating if we can have the dropped character’s corpse be discovered at a later date, but this is not mandatory to participate in (we will take no for an answer)!

If that dropped character is re-apped by the same player, they will suffer death consequences, elaborated on the “CAN WE DIE?” section below. If that dropped character is re-apped by a different player, there will not be any death consequences unless that player wants there to be. In the case of an old character being picked up by a new player, the mods will reach out to the new player first to let them know that this character was previously here.

ARE POWERS NERFED?

Only enough to not break the game or setting- teleportation is limited to places within the settlement, for example. The woods are notably impossible to traverse without being invited in- which will be established as happening from a mod for player plots and event posts- and cannot be harmed past a certain point through any means.

Should you desire a full nerf for character development or other reasons, just let us know and we will work with you!

At this time, magic cast in the Grove often warps and becomes uncontrollable. Player characters may notice that their native powers may sometimes come out stronger than intended.

WHAT WILL EVENTS BE LIKE?

Events are posted on the first Friday of every month, consisting of multiple prompts. Several may be connected somehow, intertwining into an overarching theme of the month, or may be stand-alone. All events are canon but engagement with specific prompts is not mandatory.

Occasionally there will be mini-events or player plot events as well, hosted separately and further in the month.

All main events and TDMs will feature an Investigation prompt, allowing characters to explore or investigate specific aspects of the environment at their leisure. This is open to TDM characters as well during these specific events. Investigations allow player characters to learn more about the game setting, be it the Grove proper, aspects of their past lives, or in regard to the current event. Occasionally, in lieu of a proper investigation prompt, there may be other ways to engage with similar aspects of the game. Investigations can also be handled on the NPC contact page if preferred, though this is closed only to current players.

IS THERE A NETWORK?

The "network" is composed of enchanted notebooks that, when written in, will have that same writing appear in the other enchanted notebooks ("netbooks"). Considering that mechanic, that means there are no private messages. Characters who purposely write in another language to try to circumvent this will find that their language is automatically translated to something everyone can understand. "Usernames" are merely the character's preferred name. All characters automatically receive a netbook. “Network” posts should be made on the main IC comm and should be labelled & formatted appropriately as such.

ARE THERE BONUS ACTIVITY REWARDS?

There are! All threads submitted must contain at least five comments from you, though the ammont of threads needed will depend on the item. More information is available here.

CAN WE BRING ITEMS OR PETS WITH US?

Upon entering the game your character will have their immediate inventory or a signature item- adventurers will have one (1) weapon no larger than an adult man and up to five repeat items (such as potions), for example, you could have your backpack of things, or something you often have on you (a phone and a sketchbook).

Only one animal companion is allowed, so long as it's not already an applicable character already — no Team Rocket's Meowth, Jesse and James. Familiars or summoned creatures are permitted — but only the one, as said. Animal companions may be shrunk down to be no taller than 5 feet if they're especially large, and may face power nerfs to avoid breaking the game or setting.

If you choose to regain empowered animals like Pokémon, we are capping them at three total. Additional animals can be regained as well if your character had more than one pet, but only once you are in the game — and there are also a breadth of native animals to the Grove that you can also steal, uh, we mean adopt totally ethically, who would love to be yours.

CAN CHARACTERS GAIN ABILITIES FROM THE GAME? WHAT ABOUT OTHER CHARACTERS?

Yes to both, though currently any game-granted abilities are locked, and the page is under construction. The information pages for these mechanics will go up once unlocked in the game. Characters who have magic or the knowledge to grant mechanical upgrades are able to teach or implant these themselves, if their magic is something learnable and not a biological ability. That said, powers gained from the game mechanics cannot be taught — everyone has to go through the process to get those, but they can practice together!

WHAT HAPPENS IF A PSYCHIC CHARACTER IS APPED?

At least once a month they will get a vision of an upcoming event, but maybe not with context. This vision may not also relate to the immediate next event. Good luck!

IS THERE BE A GAME DISCORD?

There is, but it is closed to game members only. It isn't meant to replace the OOC comms for plotting, however.

WHAT TIMEZONE ARE THE MODS IN?

The mods are scattered across the United States timezones, so the bulk of modwork will be done during about 9AM to midnight MST.

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IN-GAME INFORMATION

WHAT IF WE NEED WOOD OR OTHER SUPPLIES?

Heimr at the General Store will be able to provide most things — even items you may not expect from a general store. He also can provide fresh produce, but not fresh meat.

Wood and forageable items can be found in the immediate area, including amongst the bits of trees not shrouded by fog. The Forest demands thanks for these items, however.

Alongside the river is an apple tree and a series of blackberry bushes, as gifts of thanks from the Guardians. Flowers grow within the settlement and are able to be picked freely, alongside a few berry bushes beside what would be houses, but within the woods... it will depend on the situation, and noted on logs when this arises.

HOW DO WE GET WATER?

At the center of Aldric's Grove is a well that provides pristine water- and nothing seems to contaminate it either, as has been noted in various explorations. The Inn and player-built locations also have running water.

HOW DO WE GET FOOD?

Supplies such as food or cloth can be purchased from the shopkeeper himself, or wandering traders when they come to the settlement, in return for scales, medallions found while exploring, or other items you may have. He'll offer fruits, vegetables, grains, and materials to make your own bread, alongside cured meat.

Foraging in what parts of the forest are accessible is also possible, with a bounty of mushrooms and berries available, alongside fish from the river — though you must thank the forest for permitting you the former, and the bones and anything else uneaten from the fish must be returned to the river to continue the cycle of life as upheld by the River Guardian.

Alternative diets for those who require things like blood or, you know, human flesh, simply have to ask the merchant siblings to provide. Just don't ask them to elaborate, please. Or do.

HOW FAR CAN WE TRAVEL?

Aldric’s Grove and the outlying areas are expanded from time to time, meaning the explorable area grows less constrained every few months. Most areas not directly connected to the Grove such as the beach to the east and lake to the west have a ~3 day travel time, although a blessing from the River Guardian can shorten it to only 1. The north and south sides of the Grove, the south being across the river, are only a brief half-hour walk from the well.

To keep up with area expansions, regular check-ins of the plotting posts, event logs, and Locations Page are necessary. We try to make it very clear whenever there’s an expansion to an area in multiple spots, but if you’re ever confused or forget, feel free to head to our FAQ or the Q&A section of the Discord server so we can clarify!

WHAT’S THE WEATHER LIKE?

The weather tends to lean towards a little foggy with a dull cloud coverage, and a neutral temperature that may seem either a touch chilly or just brisk enough depending on the person. Any significant changes will be noted within specific logs.

WHY ARE THERE WEIRD PHOTOS OF ME AND ALSO WHY DO I APPEAR IN THIS DEAD GUY'S JOURNAL?

Player characters will note that Aldric's Grove feels familiar to them. This is because once, many centuries ago, they lived here and helped build the town in their own way, be it contributing to adult society or simply being the next generation destined to inherit the town and its legacy. However, the Forest slaughtered most of the inhabitants and it was decided that since escape was not possible, rather than fuel the entity possessing the Forest, all survivors would take part in a ritual to send their souls to another dimension, reincarnating out of its grasp... up until now, that is.

Every few months, we will hold a past life plotting meme to establish details of these past lives!

ARE THERE ANY ANIMALS?

There are fish in the river, and terrestrial animals who range between terrifying biblically-accurate deer to cute little plant-animal hybrids. There is an old dog who sits at the General Store. His name is Rusty, and he is your friend now. There is also a (cw: monster imagery) slightly-horrifying moose monster who roams freely between the Grove and the fog wall. She's friendly and will entertain conversation, but mostly keeps to herself. Other animals may be introduced to the game during events. The forest has many a monster however, each one unique.

Native to the world are also Plantimals, animal spirits that feature plantlike features. This may mean their fur is also moss, or they have leaves and flowers growing from them. They are distinguishable from Corrupted creatures in that they look much healthier and are immensely friendly and try to help, even if they do not understand what it is they are helping with.

HOW DO WE UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER? WHAT ABOUT MULTILINGUAL FOLK?

You understand each other because the forest wants you to. However, you can only be universally understood in the first language you speak within the game — any other, and only those who also know that language will understand you. Keep in mind that the latter rule does not apply to the netbooks.

CAN WE DIE?

For a little while! Characters who die will awaken in a part of the woods called the Garden, where the NPC Nene will guide them back — however, to leave the Garden and re-enter "life", they must pay a price to the forest. This can manifest in a memory, skill that cannot be relearned, or a body part. Please contact the mod if your character has died.

There will also be events where death is possible, but does not result in arriving at the Garden, but will often end with a resurrection within the Grove. These deaths will have their own consequences, but will vary depending on the event.

For characters with resurrection powers or items, they will work as intended on a much smaller scale, but something else may happen in turn — this will be situational, and a mod will keep you informed as it comes up.

SINCE WE CAN DIE, CAN WE KILL?

Sure, if you plot it out with a player! You can attempt to attack the NPCs, but this will be a case by case basis. Absolutely do not kill a character without permission. That said, do you really want to kill your fellow survivors when they'll come back and know damn well what you did?

ARE THERE CONSEQUENCES TO MISTREATING OR ANGERING THE WOODS?

Oh yes! The more you upset the Woods, the more it takes from you. This can range from something small, like an item, to something major, like a memory, a skill, or even a limb. It's also possible to trade these things to the woods for resources, or to lose them while 'playing', or as a cost of death. If your character is at risk of this, we will alert you and we can proceed from there if you wish to continue down that route.

WHAT ARE THE GUARDIANS?

Guardians are powerful spirits akin to demigods that oversee and protect certain facets of the game environment. All but one have been discovered — the guardian of the forest, the river, and the lake. The goddess-made guardian of the people, Zahliya the gargoyle, has also been resurrected and empowered with sun & moon magic through player actions. The fourth guardian has been slain, but through player action, change is always possible.

Within the ocean is also a guardian-like leviathan called the Cosmic Serpent, a shark who consumed a frankly ungodly amount of Celestial magic and mutated from it. The Cosmic Serpent is solitary and seeks to protect the oceans from outside forces, and is the source of holy rain that can ease corruption. However, it is not wise to ask them for this too often, because it likes its sleep very much and does not answer to mankind.

Related to the guardians are also the Star Shrines, little temples that are home to Stars who descended from the heavens centuries ago to aid humanity during the entity’s initial release and takeover of the forest. Discovering a Star shrine may lead to blessings!

IF THERE ARE GUARDIAN SPIRITS, ARE THERE GODS? GHOSTS? GOBLINS?

As a matter of fact, yes! Three gods have been discovered, though society has long forgotten them. The first two are Beiwe and Ourania, the goddesses of the Sun and Moon respectively, who tend to the skies together. Beiwe is a noted protective warrior, while Ourania is referred to as a healer and the mother of the stars.

The third is the Fallen Sun (also known as the False God or “the Creature”), who waged war against the other gods before being sealed within a temple. Centuries upon centuries later, he was let out on accident, and now he torments mortals, as one does.

There are no human ghosts, and the few ghosts that are there seem to be sleeping.

No word on the goblins, though.

WHAT’S THIS ABOUT SUN AND CELESTIAL MAGIC?

Magic is real and native to the setting, with Celestial magic being one aspect of it. Celestial magic is the overarching umbrella term for Sun magic, Moon magic and Star magic, overseen by the Goddesses. They can grant shards of their magic to mortals to empower them.

Sun magic oversees empowering, fire and purification through destruction. It is the warmth of the sun, and we all know the sun can burn.

Moon magic oversees healing, water and halting the corruption in its tracks. It is the gentle moonlight, but even the serene moon can inspire frenzy.

Star magic oversees aspects of both but on a much weaker scale, alongside blessings like rpg-style buffs and nerfs, defenses, and spirituality. They are the guides of fate, but scattered dimly across the night.

Other than Celestial magic, there are other aspects of magic native to the world. Heimr’s enchanted items in the bonus activity shop are considered to be standard magic items any adventurer could get at a standard store, for instance, and all NPCs have a familiarity with some aspect of magic. More accessible magic has no broad scale term, but is considered to be something anyone could learn.

…AND WHAT’S THIS ABOUT CORRUPTION?

The Forest can inflict a corruption upon those who earn its wrath or submit to its control. They are infected with parasitic plant growth that allows the Forest to control their body, influence their mind or speak to them with ease.

Corruption worsens over time with semi-unique symptoms including mutations, but can also be alleviated with sun magic, halted with moon magic, or cleansed to player choice by Zahliya's magic or with the Cosmic Serpent’s rain.

It should be noted that corruption can be transmitted from other corrupted characters, but this is by player choice.

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Comments

[verrai]

breaks this in hi amity

so! question on "game breaking" powers - where would things like divination/clairvoyancy/general future sight kind of stuff fall? will it be entirely nerfed?

[sticksandbonesmods]

Divination is totally allowed, and I will in fact be messaging people about plot pointy things! Tarot, future sight, runes, the works- and thank you for asking!

[belight]

Me realizing I need this answer to continue both my app and to write my TDM toplevel... anyway. I'm sorry, I hate FF15 abilities too but.

TL;DR the inventory characters arrive with in game is supposed to be limited, so as a general rule how would you handle nerfing in terms of characters who have magical access to hammerspaces with their entire array of possessions stored inside? I'm asking this as a general rule first before I decide if I need to ask about any specific items.

[sticksandbonesmods]

No hammerspace! You can choose up to five things from his inventory, with five per repeat item.

[crestfallenfor]

Questions not relevant for Sylvain here but are relevant for, you know, Resident Potential Sad Redhead OC (and sundry other ocs too, shh) so account relevant wheeze

1 - So uh. We're in the woods...! What's The Sunlight Situation looking like during the daytime? :3

2 - Necromancy...! Are there ghosts around? Corpses to raise? Whether the woods/fog/entities within would appreciate Spooky Shenanigans is another thing entirely, but, like, is it possible!

3 - For special dietary needs (vampires, I'm asking about vampires in this one pff) are such things as Blood and Human(-adjacent) Flesh typical groceries or the kind of thing any potential resident mosquitoes would have to convince other player characters to donate?

[sticksandbonesmods]

1. The weather changes accordingly, but by default there's some cloud coverage that dulls the sunlight. It's kinda chilly year-round because of this.

2. There's an unsettling lack of ghosts or corpses within the settlement. When brought into the woods, however, there's an abundance- so much so that if you can see ghosts, it feels like you're drowning in the dead. The corpses, however, are nowhere to be found at this time.

3. The Shopkeeper can't provide blood or blood adjacent items but will mention trying to contact someone who can- until then, you'll have to convince someone to be your snackbar.

Or you could trust a gift from the Woods. :) It wouldn't do if it's playthings starved, after all.

[bethorns]

I'm curious about animal companions...so! The Forgers have a dog who has precognition abilities, would that be okay? Side note: Yor does not know he has these abilities. She just thinks he is a normal floofy dog. I'm just like "is a precog dog TOO MUCH" because I have anxiety about bringing things that would gamebreak.

[sticksandbonesmods]

Bond would be allowed, and be permitted the same benefits of a clairvoyant character: which is, I will give Bond prophecies and visions! Good luck re: him telling anyone shit, though.

[deem]

Hello again!

Can I safely assume a generic pod falls under the technological equivalent of a familiar? Scanner units like 9S in particular are not suited to heavy combat and are assigned pods to help defend and repair themselves, as well as things like fishing or...pulling them out of deep water so they don't drown.

I ask about a generic one because Pod 153, while questionably appable, does exert individual will, talk, and have its own opinions which is at the very least borderline. Throughout the game, broken pods are salvaged and repaired however. These do not talk, and only serve utility functions.

[sticksandbonesmods]

These would fall under the 'familiar' category, yes!

[harmacy]

hello it is GLASSES TIME ALREADY because add is no fool, he is going to put them on .2 seconds after getting them because how else does he know he isn't being ripped off???

so yeah what happens if he stares directly at the shopkeeper with them on. is there anything immediately weird and obvious in the shop he will look around until he finds Something if he has to

[sticksandbonesmods]

The shop has... echoes of a sort, little lights that feel familiar and vanish or flicker away if Add gets too close. The sound of people chattering lowly, positive and curious and unaware of the eavesdropper, but he can't distinctly make anything out.

Sometimes a voice will sound familiar.

The shopkeeper will seem so much larger, and he's already 7 feet tall- so much larger and so much more hollow. The man is running on fumes, the dark shadows of his body wavering.

He will politely point out that it's rude to stare at a man's soul like that, and ask that he... not.

(Should he try it on the Trader, the results will be similar.)

[harmacy]

hi hello we are making more questionable choices in the lab

So if Add were to remove one of the flowers sprouting off Elsword's infected arm and transplant it into a pot, would it survive outside the host? Is it just a normal flower now with no freakish parasite behaviors or has he successfully cloned the forest parasite? how mad is it gonna be if he starts torturing it... we could do a bit of water torture or maybe drip just a lil acid on it or hold a candle way too close to the leaves, if he's feelin real nasty he'll go collect some caterpillars how do YOU feel about having a parasite huh

he will at least have the sense to keep it contained in more of a terrarium than an open pot but like. yeah, this deffo won't have consequences...

[sticksandbonesmods]

A parasitic plant from the corruption would immediately try to reach out for it's host or a new one- careful how close you let it get to you, Add- but if it cannot after three minutes, it would kill itself immediately. Attempting to dissect the remains will cause it to self-destruct further, almost out of spite- up until only a black, rotten sludge that seems to erode examination tools remains.

If you do manage to inflict some torture on it before it kills itself, the host will feel everything in it's stead, because the mental connection still remains even without the physical connection.

fandom oc question

[alligatus]

for fandom oc characters, if the character attends the same place as the canon characters is it okay to say that they have some knowledge of the other characters?

More so in fate's world, it is canon that many timelines exist where alterations happen. I wanted to have Lancelot be from the same timeline where FGO takes place. However, is a Lancelot from a timeline/singularity that has no relation to anyone in FGO. Other than the main character (who is tied to everyone), and has an understanding of many people around them.

In FGO this is kind of normal?

Its be like fandom oc in Ark Knights, they know the doctor and have an idea of who everyone is, but actually does not pertain to anyone's story in any way. While also not having DEEP details on everyone in the series either.

Re: fandom oc question

[sticksandbonesmods]

Knowing of other servants is fine, but having a direct connection is not. For Arthurian characters, there may have to be a timeline discrepancy to accommodate this. This is to avoid fandom OCs knowing canon characters, as per our FAQ rules. Let us know if that doesn't make sense.

[thephotosynthesis]

Here to bother the mods with weird worldbuilding questions

Olivia is a botanist! I'm not gonna ask for a full description of the ecosystem of the spooky woods, but:

1. Does the plant life resemble Earth's, enough to be recognizable to someone who's studied plants? If so, any particular region, or some kind of mysterious hodgepodge?

2. Would there be any chance that she'd run into specific plants from her own canon (green/red/blue herbs)? I'm assuming this one's a no.

3. Would discovering new plants and ways to use them be something I could get up to over the course of the RP?

[sticksandbonesmods]

Oh this is the exact opposite of a bother! Both mods were very gleeful about these questions and wouldn't shut up about how cute they were. In order:

1. They do! But... not in a way that makes sense? It feels as if multiple forest ecosystems were just kind of. Stacked on top of each other and they figured out a way to mesh cohesively. Or maybe uncohesively, given the state of the haunted woods.

2. Actually, there are. Much like you may find canon-native river fish in the river, if you search you will eventually find canon-native plants as well. If there's a specific plant you'd like to find, just give us some information about it please!

3. Absolutely, we are SO eager to enable this!

[deathrespect]

real vandal deep cut tracks and muses with this guy but i'd like to play him as a CRAU from slumscape; basically he was possessed by an oni named Genkei and they shared his body. he's appable but without his presence in his body they'll both die. he has a mask that tethers them to one another too but i think that'd be fine with the game's item policy

anyway i'm ok to play it whichever way works best for mods' vision so ... if genkei wouldn't be there anymore or if i could play them both in the same body either way is cool with me, just wanna doublecheck. ty ty!!

[sticksandbonesmods]

Consider: we love him tho

We would be good with you playing him as CRAU with Genkei under the stipulation that they would have to be in the same body and remain in the same body, i.e. they can't separate and be separate dudes just walkin around. We would treat it kind of like we would treat any Moon Knight MCU situations that might arise in the future if you're familiar with that at all.

Tl;dr: As long as they're sharing a body, we'll count them as "one" character.

Let us know if you have questions!

[general_affairs]

Hello!! I have a feeeeeew questions!

I'm interested in throwing a small variety of characters here and I wanna kinda know what my options look like for a couple of unique cases.

1) are AUs allowed? Like. A canon character that's. Pretty heavily AU'd because of ~*Personal Growth*~ through storylines/rp, but still retains core tenets and socializing of the original character, such that they're not an OC or unrecognizable, BUT are otherwise very different from their canon counterpart? It's a Homestuck muse, which HAS alternate timelines in canon, but I wanted to ask since the canon alternates are just doomed timelines and this is a whole OTHER universe offshoot. If you guys decide not to accept it, that's a-okay!! I figured it never hurts to ask. <3

If you want more details, feel free to check out this post. Be warned I haven't even finished filling it out(I'll be finishing it after work today) and this is the short version, as I've been rping him 10 years. Again, if you say no it's totally okay and no offense or upset will be had. We're all adults here.

2) If I were to app in a sort of fey character with an extremely strong tie to the flow of natural magic, such that the lack thereof could slowly kill him, would there be any passive magic accumulation for him to sleep near? And if the forest notices the character letting its energy flow through him, would there be any consequence to this?

If he could not utilize the energy, would it be possible to provide a work-around, or could I plot w muns that have magically inclined characters? :3

[sticksandbonesmods]

Hi friend!

1) We allow canon-AUs (for example — we would allow Batman from the Dark Knight movies or Batman from the Justice League movies, which are arguably two different iterations of Batman; alternatively we would allow Skadi or Skadi the Corrupting Heart from Arknights) but we do not allow player-made AUs. If the AU in question is tied to the canon timelines you mention, that would be allowed.

2) There are multiple ways you could play this depending on what you'd like for the character! To be clear, the setting itself is filled with ambient magic, so he would be able to recharge just about anywhere he wanted. That said, if you wanted the very sentient forest to notice he's freely letting the magic flow through him, you are more than free to play with our corruption mechanic — that is, the forest will gradually try to become "one" with the character. This includes a lot of body horror (sprouting flowers/vines, becoming made of wood, etc). You may freely opt out of this of course, we realise body horror is not for everybody. And yes, we do have several player characters with magical inclinations, and I'm sure they wouldn't mind plotting that out with you if you wanted to!

I hope that all helps! Thank you for asking, if anything's unclear let us know!

[kohenkyo]

HELLO a couple questions about canon AUs! Digimon Survive has 4 possible routes that all follow the same plot outline for like 90% of the game with only a few key choices changed along the way up to some major changes at the ending. Would it be okay to be like... intentionally vague/unclear about which route I'm using as my canon point ICly? At the canonpoint I plan to app from it doesn't really matter to my character very much, but mostly I'd like to keep it open in case I somehow get castmates (since certain characters are dead in different routes).

If that's okay, follow up question: can I say my characters has an amalgam of memories from all routes' major events, or is it better to keep it linear and just say he can't remember any of the major events at all? I would be assuming some amount of brain jumbling regardless but might be fun to get the best of all routes so he can be like "man i dont even fucking know what happened last month" if it ever comes up.

[sticksandbonesmods]

HELLO!

Yes, it's fine to be vague in case you get castmates since it doesn't matter to the character much. Praying for castmates 4 u.

We are okay with either option for brain-jumbling as long as it's kept consistent (and explained to any major castmates). Since you are keeping the ending vague depending on castmates, it would be fine to also have memories of whatever is necessary to keep the plot flowing, essentially.

[lovinglefthand]

Hi mods! This game looks really cool <3

I wanted to know if a Transformer would be considered appable, perhaps after being locked into a human body by the forces running the setting, or from an AU where they always had a human appearance? I'm aware that their canonical size could be an impediment to gameplay, but I'm hoping we can mitigate that!

[sticksandbonesmods]

Thank you!

Transformers would be appable! Humanizing them isn't necessary, but they would have to be shrunk down considerably on account of we don't want to break our buildings.

We only accept canon aus, so if it's a fan au we wouldn't be able to accept that.

[anthropophagite]

Sorry if this was answered somewhere else.

Related to characters with more gross dietary needs (e.g. cannibals), are corpses still nowhere to be found? And I'm assuming the merchant still can't provide anything like that, correct?

[sticksandbonesmods]

The merchant siblings will provide for "alternative" diets as needed! Regardless of what it may be. Just don't ask them to think about it for too long. This applies to vampires, ghouls and whatever else may come.

[lostpsalm]

REGARDING RE-APPS

is it street legal to to have advanced one's canon point without losing memories of previous time ingame

[sticksandbonesmods]

It is absolutely street legal!

apping animals

[livlaughlove]

c&p but are characters who are sapient animals appable? do anthropomorphized medias count as sentience. like would a warrior cat with a personality and coherent thoughts be treated as a cat doing cat things or more as something that falls under the benefit of universal language?

thank u mods i love u

Re: apping animals

[sticksandbonesmods]

That would depend on if the animal is like... say, Meowth. If it has a degree of sentience and would be an appable character by default yes, if it's just like someone's dog that does dog things, no. Warrior Cats would count as appable.

[mooninthewater]

HI this is a general question, I'm asking it here.

I know people can expand their buildings by using BAC to buy rooms from Heimr, but can other people buy rooms for a building (if it's alright with the player)?

Example, if Silverash wanted to expand Gnosis' lab, would that be allowed?

[sticksandbonesmods]

If the player is alright with that, that would be allowed. We would ask you to put in your BAC regularly, and then have the player who owns the building in question comment under the post giving their approval in some capacity.

If a player-purchased building is unowned (i.e. the Rec Center at time of writing), BAC can be used to expand those as well without needing to ask the dropped player for their express permission to expand it.

(ooc) *drops in*

[bloodyopus]

Hi! I'd like to ask a question regarding the application. going to ask it here so as to not spam Gnosis-mun further in emp meme comment

For the sample section, does it have to be one thread with ten comments from us (ofc with the character we're apping), or would it be okay, for example, if we put in one or two other thread links if the main sample didn't/hadn't reached ten comments from us yet? So let's say the main thread has only 6 comments from us, but the second link/thread has four comments from us, which would make it ten comments in total. (Also wondering - although this is probably just the nitpick in me speaking, sorry - if ten comments means ten with one other character or would it perhaps be like your monthly AC requirements: ten with two different characters, which means five with character A and five with character B.)

In relation to the above, I am also wondering if supplementary samples are alright (in addition to the main sample even if we already have ten comments there), or if just one sample is fine, providing that we have fulfilled the ten comments minimum threshold.

My other question is with regards to the inventory. This is just making sure (since I have read the BAC page), but would it be possible for our character to arrive with two sets of clothes in the Grove? One that they're wearing (aka the classic 'clothes on their back') plus another one that they somehow have with them when they wake up...in a bag or something. Phantom did have a canon history of having another set of clothes mysteriously appeared with him in Rewinding Breeze, after all

Thanks a lot in advance! I hope this is not too confusing.

Re: (ooc) *drops in*

[sticksandbonesmods]

Seeing as our sample standard is based on our AC requirements, two threads or a toplevel with multiple threads would work! But no more than two separate threads with up to ten comments from your character. If you'd like to add supplementary samples, that's certainly fine but it's by no means required.

Your starting inventory is based on what your character would have, and if he'd have a change of clothes on him- which is more than feasible for a multitude of reasons- that's more than okay! We all live colorful lives, there's no reason why a set of clothes isn't at the bottom of your backpack.

This is what we're here for, don't worry!

*breaks in here again*

[bloodyopus]

sorry i'm too drained to open discord

Hi hi! A quick question: for pets/animal companions, if we'd like to use our BAC for one, would it classify as small or medium item from home? or is there a third secret option, perhaps

i have tea and cookies waiting for you

[sticksandbonesmods]

If you'd like to simply regain Miss Christine without a quest, given that she is a cat she would be considered small! Otherwise we would judge based on size. A quest can be requested icly through talking to Ydalir or Heimr- though for a from-home item Ydalir is the go-to merchant- and essentially gives the character a task to fulfil in exchnage for their regain. The thread where the task is assigned and the thread of fulfilling the task with another character must both be linked in the bonus AC shop to finalize everything, like so.

[majormalfunction]

Hi there! I've been eyeing the game for a while, and I've got a few questions. Not all of these apply to the same character, but it will help me narrow down who to app. Thanks in advance!

1. I'm assuming there's no native support for robotic/mechanical characters that may need repairs, but has there been anything of the sort put in place by player characters? It would a character of sufficient skill have the resources available to put something like that together?

2. For multiversal/planewalker characters, obviously I would be removing their planewalking abilities for the duration of their stay, but given they are aware of other planes and are from the "real" one, would they still be appable within the setting? I'm perfectly fine giving them a crisis of faith, just wanted to verify before I broke things.

3. Are TTRPG characters appable as originals? Would a pre-generated character count for this?

4. For characters with particularly strong emotional/psychic bonds to others not in the setting, do those break upon entering, are they intact but weak, or do they remain unaltered? The bonds in question provide no particular power or advantage, but do tie two people together quite intimately. They would be survivable (kinda) if broken, but a heads up of what would happen would be nice.

5. Are the mods or application readers in a place where they would be safe with adult/upsetting/triggering content (with warnings) in a history section? These are not likely to come up in game, and I do have permissions posts for players to opt out of content or interaction entirely.

Sorry there's so many, I tend to be overly cautious. Thanks so much!

[sticksandbonesmods]

Of course! We'll do our best. (And you have excellent taste- I will admit I gasped with glee when I saw Major.)

1. There is no native support for robotic or mechanical characters, but we have multiple player characters who would be able to help, and willing to learn what's needed. Alongside this, while our NPCs are geared towards magic, one of them is specifically geared for magic that is "whatever you need", though it comes with a small exchange- she can issue tasks to complete and in return, your request will be granted. You can also gain items from home through Bonus Activity to help with supporting yourself.

2. Yes, they would be appable!

3. Yes, they are. We've had multiple Tabletop characters in the past, including a late-campaign character, and are more than willing to work with anything you believe may be concerning.

4. The bonds would be maintained but severely weakened.

5. Yes, we are. Between the two of us we can cover what the other can't, and given your already demonstrated care we trust that you'll be respectful and note any warnings before diving into it.

We're very excited about our theories for your prospects, and we hope to see you soon! If you have further questions, don't hesitate to ask.

[raspberrydrink]

Howdy! So I saw in other questions that humanizing non-human characters isn't required. But if we wanted to do so would that be allowed?

("Jess is this about Cookies?" IDK MAYBE)

[sticksandbonesmods]

Hi!

Yes, this is totally allowed. Our current cookies are Ryslig CRAU, but we would just Let you do this without the need for CRAU-ing. If you were to app, we'd ask that you let us know on your application if you are humanizing your character. The Grove operates strangely, and there are reasons someone may show up human-er than they remember being. :)

[storied_blade]

Hi Hello blame Jess for this

If a character has magical powers but they are entirely from an external source (like, say, a warlock patron).... would they still work in game or would they be cut off from the source and therefore lose access to the magic?

[sticksandbonesmods]

Blame noted!

There's no removal of his powers! However, he will feel that unless his patron is also in this plain, casting comes with a heavy strain. He also may feel as if their connection has been weakened.

[ghostharasser]

Hello!! I have a quick question!

Dipper has a mechanic that's specific to his CRAU called Corruption that I was curious if he could keep. To quote the game info pages:

Corruption: The process of mental stability depleting, causing most to become a different but still recognizable version of themselves. Blood pollution and negative experiences largely contribute to corruption. Some people may always be corrupt while others may fluctuate.

Aka, the more you get mentally and emotionally spent, the more corrupted you get, and then when one hits the threshold, they turn into a hideous monster. It's intrinsically tied to Dipper having weird Bloodborne blood so I figured it might be intact.

It's just a fun mechanic and something I like playing with, but its definitely something I want to make sure is okay to bring over hence the ask.

[sticksandbonesmods]

This is absolutely fine to keep! Sorry about the inevitable Corruption confusion, Dipper.

[start_again]

Extremely niche question ahoy (with spoilers for In Stars And Time ahead)!

So I see it's specified that "you can only be universally understood in the first language you speak". Because of Reasons, Siffrin here can't remember his actual native language. He speaks at least one other language, but they're not his first language. Would that mean he'd be stuck communicating entirely via writing with the network translations (unless anyone happens to know French)?

[sticksandbonesmods]

That was a misphrasing on our part, and we'll be sure to edit that asap! The first language you speak within the game itself is what was meant. So if someone was bilingual and used both languages equally, the one they used first to speak to another in the Grove would be their default understood language, while the other would only be able to be understood by others who spoke that language.

[telecosmetic]

When you say characters are limited to one CRAU, how exactly should that work with my two-CRAU character?

a) I can only take her from after the CRAU of the first game she was in.
b) I can take her from after the CRAU of the second game she was in, but her first game CRAU memories will be hazy.

I've seen limited CRAU done the second way before, which is why I'm not assuming the first option. Her first game was a murdergame which was very intense and did change her quite a bit, but I wanted more to take her from the second CRAU where she got most of her character development. I'm also curious as to what this does to CRAU powers-my character has powers from both CRAU games, but in her second CRAU game she got enhancements to her first game powers as well.

Also, since her second CRAU has gone through endgame already, is it okay if I take her from some time after that endgame having done more in her own world, including picking up some native abilities?

[sticksandbonesmods]

In terms of stacked CRAU, we ask that it be from the first game only unless the two games are connected like Deer or multi-round murdergames. However, we would allow characters to be from post-endgame events.

CRAU powers would also be allowed but nerfed to game standards as required.

Thank you for asking! We'll add this clarification to the FAQ as soon as possible.