FAQ & Rules

These are the rules by which OSW is played. Love them and obey them. If you have any problems with them, take them up with a mod.

Chatroom

AIM "oswchat" disclaimer, to be read, respected, and followed by all those that enter and participate in the chatroom:


• We are all adults, and for the most part mature individuals. We have likes and dislikes, and deserve to be respected and to give respect to our fellow chatroom participants and game members. As well, no one in the chatroom is psychic, though there are times it seems like it. PLEASE, speak up, to your fellow chatters or to a mod in private IM if you are having an issue with something. If you do so, be POLITE and respectful about it. It can be about another member(s) or about things being discussed in the chatroom that you are unhappy about. Only then can it be addressed. Not only that, everyone needs to be courteous and aware of the comfort levels of their fellow chatters and do their best to keep the peace. Everyone is responsible for themselves and their words and actions. Even if you may think it is little and you don't want to bother anyone, you have the right to be comfortable in the chatroom and enjoy it just as much as anyone else. This is not a monopoly.

Rules

• Play nice. Be respectful of and don't flame the other players. If you have a disagreement with someone and can't work it out, bring it up with the mods.



• No godmoding. Do not control other people's characters unless you have the other player's permission. That means 1) do not kill people, 2) make them take damage, 3) control what they say or do. If you have any questions about what you want to post as being godmoding, bring it up with a mod or ask the player for permission.



• This is a PG-13 RP. No posting smut, excessive gore or violent imagery. Implied sex/fade to blacks are fine.



• Please use proper English language, spelling, and grammar. That means no netspeak, use the Caps Lock lock and Shift keys, and try to use punctuation, grammar, and spell to the best of your abilities. The mods want to see this on your application as well. LJ has a spellcheck function in its preview, and if you are unsure of your spelling please make use of it.



• Though the game is based on an anime and set in Japan, there is NO usage of Japanese. Suffixes (such as 'san', 'chan', 'kun', and 'dono' among others) as well as names for food (soba, osenbe, anko, odango, etc) are acceptable. See the Wiki (linked below) for a full vocabulary that is regularly updated.



• Since more people are familiar with them, we are using the anime storyline and the original Japanese terms (ginzuishou, senshi, etc). There are dozens of resources on the internet that will help you if you don't know anything about either. Elements from the manga may be utilized by the mods in world building, and will be explained if necessary to the players. If you have any questions about matters of canon or the world of OSW, feel free to ask the mods.



• Use the main community for RPing. The OOC comm is for OOC discussion and announcements. Character journals can be used for fanfiction or fanart, or side posts that are potentially canon but not inherently impacting to the overall plot, but should not be used for RPing in general.



• The minimum amount of posting is once every two weeks. If you do not post to this minimum requirement, you will be deemed inactive and will be spoken with by the mods. Depending on the frequency and length of time between posts, the mods will dole out what they deem to be appropriate punishment and/or warning. If there is some RL situation deeming an extended abscence from the RPG, please let the mods know so we know not to mark your character as inactive.



• We are running on a 3 strikes policy. If you break the rules 3 times, you're gone. Vioaltions that will result in a strike is breaking ANY rule at what the mods would consider a level serious enough to be counted as a strikeable offense. The offending player will be warned they have strikes and what they have received them for.

Gameplay

• New players can have up to 3 characters. Once regularity of posting and the ability to juggle three characters has been demonstrated, players may be allowed to apply for more. Please have a regular LJ username so the mods can keep track of who each character belongs to. If you have multiple characters to the max limit (3), one MUST be a sue or a stu.



• You cannot play a canon character. Neo-Queen Serenity and any other canon characters are NPCs. Dark/Evil versions of canon senshi (Ie. Dark Moon, Dark Mercury, etc.) are not allowed; 'Neo' or 'Chibi' versions of canons are also not allowed. Any connections to canon characters (either as senshi or civilians) automatically qualifies that character as a Sue/Stu and should be applied as such.



• Titles are first come, first serve. If the title you want is taken, try to use a variant of it. (Example: If Star is taken, you can use Nebula, Black Hole, Neutron Star, etc.) Changing the spelling of a word is not considered a variant. The only exception will be for Andromeda. (There is a galaxy and a constellation named Andromeda. The constellation has already been taken.)



• Male OCs/Knights are allowed, and encouraged :). However, every object/element can only have one character for it. (Example: You can have a knight or a senshi for Ganymede, but not both.)



• Due to the new status of some planets in our solar system (and thus changing the original Sailor Moon canon), the following things must be taken into account:
  • Ceres is not available as a senshi. She is a canon senshi.
  • Charon is a moon of Pluto. She/he is availble.
  • As per official world "canon", the planet beyond Pluto is named Eris, after the Greek Goddess of Chaos. She/he IS a planet and she/he is NOT available.



• Real-world celestial objects only. Senshi for original fan-created planets are not allowed unless there is a possibility that they could exist (ex. the planet where the asteroid belt is located and was destroyed according to astronomical theory). Senshi for planets from other canons are not allowed, either (Star Wars planets, planets from video games, other animes, books, etc.). There are more than enough moons, celestial objects, elements, whatever to supply a large army of characters. Nonhuman characters are allowed, although depending on how nonhuman they are, going unnoticed in a human city may be a little difficult :)



• Don't be afraid to be creative or silly. Since this is partly a comedy RP, your character does not have to be completely serious. A lot of the planets' moons have crazy names; use this to your advantage. As for senshi realms of influence, while they are allowed to overlap, we much prefer unique elements. Suggestions for possible elements include rotation, sewage, teeth, color, density, paper, goats, sound and regeneration.



• The list of active characters is in the Character Request Topic in the OOC community:
  • Active characters are those currently in play.
  • Inactive characters are those currently inactive but not removed from play. These characters may be picked up again by their original player.
  • Retired/unavailable characters are characters who have been removed from play. Those characters and their celestial objects cannot be applied for.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What time period is OSW set in?
OSW is set in the 31st century, Crystal Tokyo. It is approximately 150 years after the Great Freeze ended, and current citizens would have parents or grandparents that survive the Freeze. Currently it is the year 3159, which corresponds to 2009 in RL time.

2. What are the tecnological differences?
Technology in the 31st century is only slightly more advanced than it is in the 21st century. It not being more advanced (like you would see in futuristic science fiction) is because of the 1,000 years the Earth was frozen in stasis before being revived by Neo Queen Serenity in the beginning of the 30th century. Technology utilizing crystals as power sources or energy regulators are common. Some examples include crystal discs for storing video and audio, and the entertainment systems Nintendo Revolution (a console) and Nintendo Crystal (a handheld).

3. Do common folk know about the senshi? How much?
Everyday citizens know very little about the senshi, especially from archival material of news and history. Not to mention the Inner Senshi (Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus) act as the Guardians of the Queen. They are only referred to as such, and not as 'senshi'. There is a small branch of academia known as 'senshigaku' which studies the bits and pieces of senshi information from before the Great Freeze, but generally it's lumped in the same catergory as paranormal studies.

Sailor V (and later Sailor Moon) were icons of shoujo media, and merchandise (action figures, clothes, badges and stickers, video games, etc) and anime movies exist dedicated to Sailor V, and some of Sailor Moon.

4. Do outside systems have contact with the solar system?
While outside systems can travel to the Sol system, no communications or alliances have been officially set up between them.

5. How long has Marin City been around? Can characters be born there?
Marin City has been around for several years, and yes, characters can be born there.

6. How's the alternate dimension work? Is it connected to the outside world?
Think of it like a bubble, one that surrounds Marin City. Inside the bubble is a controlled space that is monitored by the Queen.

7. How strong is the barrier between Marin and the rest of the world? Can PCs, NPCs, or monsters cross it?
Senshi are capable of crossing the barrier, but as having them outside the barrier sort of defeats the purpose of having it, they are discouraged from doing so via convenient circumstances, much the same as ones that brought them to Marin in the first place. Civilians are generally not considered a threat by Neo-Queen Serenity and can come and go as they please. Aliens, monsters, and other antagonists can enter the barrier, but find it much more difficult to leave.

8. What's the rest of the solar system like? Are there colonies outside of Earth?
There are kingdoms and colonies and communities that exist on astral bodies besides what is in the Sol system, however these are not in official contact with the Moon Kingdom.

9. How advanced is space travel at large? For the common folk? How much of the solar system is known?
Space travel, like the technology, is only somewhat more advanced than it is in the 21st century. Its rare for common people to do it, though astronomical telescopes and photographing have gotten quite prolific.

10. What was the relationship between the smaller bodies (asteroids, comets, moons, TNOs) and the canons in general during the Silver Millennium? How did they fit into the solar system?
While there may have been communication and affiliation between the various systems and the Moon Kingdom, since they mostly lie beyond the bounds (marked by Pluto), they are not considered a part of the Sol system and the Moon Kingdom. Many smaller kingdoms, such as asteroids, functioned as independant systems or in small alliances with neighbors.

11. Can small kingdoms in our solar system still exist? What happened to them during Beryl's attack?
Yes, they can exist. They could have been destroyed in the attack, or been sealed, or nearly eradicated but hanging on by the skin of their teeth while struggling to repopulate and rebuild.

12. Are outsider senshi (constellations, nebulas, etc) allowed to visit or interact with the Silver Millennium/during Beryl's attack?
No. Not unless you want to play a Mary Sue or Gary Stu.

13. What kind of canon relationships are allowed for Sues? Non-sues?
Sues pretty much have free reign on their replationships, while non-sues have less freedom. Say you make a non-sue senshi/knight of a moon of Jupiter; this character may or may not have had contact with Sailor/Princess Jupiter during the Silver Millenium, but if interaction did not happen in the series and their current incarnation, then it will not be allowed in the character history. So, interaction could have happened during the Silver Millenium, but none with Makoto Kino.

14. What about Eris/Ceres/Pluto? What's their status, given the IAU currently classifies them as dwarf planets? What if other dwarf planets are discovered?
Naoko Takeuchi created the series before the new classifications were set in place, and as such we will continue to operate via Naoko-verse. Ceres is an asteroid, Pluto is a planet, and Eris will be given planetary status. If other dwarf planets are discovered, they will be planets as well, but not part of the Sol system (like Eris). Charon is considered a moon of Pluto.

15. Can characters come to Earth directly without being reborn as humans, with their memories of a senshi intact?
Yes they can, though if they arrive with their powers intact or with them being sealed for a variety of reasons (due to trauma, or being sealed by the ginzuishou) is up to the player.

16. What's with the biology of the humans on Earth?
The lifespan for any human member of Earth is 1,000 years. During this time, the immune system is severely boosted and severe disease is usually rare though not unheard of. Common colds and flus have prevailed, unfortunately.

People stop aging between the years 20-23, and maintain a youthful appearance. However, aging is not stopped completely and continues at a greatly reduced rate, and people reaching the end of their lifespan will show signs of age (just how old depends on the individual).

All of these are granted by the power of the Silver Crystal. Aliens (senshi and otherwise) that arrive on Earth will not immediately be granted this blessing, but over time their bodies may "absorb" enough of the Crystal's energy that they have some traits that Earth humans are naturally born with.

17. What is the Great Freeze?
The Great Freeze refers to a period of 1,000 years that the entirety of Earth was frozen inside crystal. The Freeze began at the start of the year 2000. The cause is theorized to be the Silver Crystal and Sailor Moon, who froze the Earth to protect it from complete destruction at the hands of a calamity that began in the summer of 1999. Neo Queen Serenity unfroze the Earth at the start of the 30th century and instated Crystal Tokyo as the new eutopia capitol of the world.

A large percentage of the global population perished during the Great Freeze, but despite this there is usually little to no ill will towards the actions taken with the Silver Crystal due to the ultimate salvation of the planet and humanity.