FAQ 3

Applying To X-Project

The Basics

Rules

What are the rules of the game?

The full game policies can be found here. If you have questions about something, you can contact the mods. The policies are discussed among the playerbase and voted upon before being declared official, in order to ensure fairness.

The basic rules are such:

• respect each other as players
• post regularly (at least once a month in any format)
• follow the policies pertaining to gameplay.

It is expected that all applicants will have read and agreed to abide by these policies when they send their application in. Ignorance of the rules is no excuse if you find yourself on the wrong end of a complaint.

Genetic Status

Does my character have to be a mutant?

Primarily, yes. According to the rules for Character Applications, as voted on by the players, since XP is a mutant-centric universe, characters with extraordinary abilities will need to be mutants. You can play characters without powers - Dr. Moira MacTaggart was formerly a PC, for example - but you do need to be aware that it may restrict your range of play.

Does this mean I can't play X Character, who isn't a mutant?

Not at all. Applicants are permitted to adapt canon non-mutant characters into mutants with similar powers and/or abilities (such as Amanda Sefton and Nico Minoru both being mutants with magic-channelling abilities). The mods will consider applications for non-mutant characters so long as the application is exceptional. What does that mean? Basically, you need to come up with a strong reason why your character can't be converted into a mutant, and why they will be connected to the mansion and/or one of the New York teams. For example, Cain Marko was the game's first non-mutant powered character, but he had a family connection to the mansion and thus it made sense for him to be there.

Are there any restrictions as to who can be made into a mutant?

No, there will be no cut off point for adapting canonical human characters into mutant player characters for the game, but mutant powers should reflect the skills, strength, and professional use of the existing canon character. Which means, the character needs to have some kind of extraordinary ability to be explained by a mutant power. However, given the comics' tendency to push the limits of human skills and physics, that still gives you a whole lot of leeway.

Canon Knowledge

How much X-Men knowledge do I have to have to play? Just the movies? The comics? Everything there ever was released?

XP uses the first two movies as a foundation, but has moved on significantly from there. In terms of what a person needs to know, we'd suggest that knowing the XP canon first (through the Wiki), as well as at least knowledge of your potential character's personal canon, is required. Given inspiration comes from various places, not just comics or movie canon, it's not necessary to have encyclopedic knowledge of X-Men canon. And if there's something you don't understand, you can always ask - player knowledge ranges from those who only saw the movies to those who have been collecting comics for twenty years.

Do I have to read all of the Wiki? There's a lot of backhistory there!

What we'd recommend is that you spend some time before applying surfing the Wiki and getting a handle on the game. The Timeline will give you a good overview of the history pre-X2 and over the course of the game, and the monthly summaries will give you a more detailed look at every month in the game since May 2003. You won't be expected to know everything - that's what the Wiki is for! - and you're encouraged to ask questions of the mods or the players, both during the app process and after you're accepted.

We strongly recommend reading along via xp_friends for a little while, so you can get an idea of how we do things.

Holds and Applications

How many characters can I have?

As per the policy, players may have two characters in XP. You may only apply for a second character after three months of consistent play with your first, demonstrating you have the time and commitment to play two. On-screen interaction should be kept to an absolute minimum between characters belonging to one person.

Can I ask for a character to be held while I app?

We don't formally hold characters for applications, however if we receive more than one expression of interest in a character, we'll keep everyone informed and let people decide if they want to submit an application any way. Applications will be decided on merit, not 'first in, best dressed'.

How do I apply to play?

You can find our applications guidelines here. Read it (and the rest of the policies) first to get an idea of what we expect of players.

Our application can be found here. Fill it in completely, and submit it to the mods. You'll receive a note confirming it's been received, and will be looked over. If you don't receive the acknowlegement email within three days, contact us again - it's possible your app hasn't been received. You will most likely be asked to do a test log with one of the mods, and there may be a clarification email sent if there are questions.

The Application

It's a confusing application - is there one I can look at to get an idea?

Yes! We have a Sample Application up for you to get the idea. And we always welcome questions.

What's the deal with the character journal? What is it used for?

The journals were established IC as an initiative between Charles Xavier and Hank McCoy to foster communication within the school and later its affiliates. Every character in X-Project has a journal, which they can use to talk about various things. The posting of memes and quizzes IC is not allowed, for the sake of spamming friendslists - as you can see, we're pretty active without using those as filler!

Should I make the journal before I app?

NO! - unlike other games, the mods will supply you with the journal once you're approved. It helps save on the number of unused character journals, given the 'branding' of XP journal names with the prefix "x_". Also, the character journals are considered the property of X-Project and should you leave for any reason, you will be asked for it back. If you don't agree with this, we're probably not the game for you.

Due to an LJ issue with the automatic payment system that saves your credit card billing information on your journal, we ask that players DO NOT USE THE AUTOMATIC BILLING FEATURE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, as we will still require the journal back should you leave.

How long will it take to approve my application?

Unfortunately, we can't give a hard and fast time frame for applications. Sometimes they take only a few days. Sometimes they might take a week or two, if the character is a particularly complicated one, or poses various issues to the game, or if you submit during busy RL periods. The mods will keep in touch, however and guarantee to contact you within a week of receiving your email.