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Sime~Gen Roleplaying on IRC
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions about Sime~Gen:
Questions about Role Playing:
IRC Questions:
Questions about Joining our Game:
Questions about Playing the Game:
If your question hasn't been answered here....
Our game takes place in Jacqueline Lichtenberg's Sime~Gen Universe, as developed in a series of science fiction novels by Jacqueline Lichtenberg and Jean Lorrah published from the mid-70's to the mid-80's. Click here for more information including links for where to buy the books.
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How much do I need to know about Sime~Gen?
The rules of the Sime~Gen universe make up 90% of our gaming rules. What this means is that when there is a question of what is "legal", what your character's abilities are, or what might happen in a certain situation, we ultimately end up referring back to the published novels and, with a grain of salt, the sanctioned fanfiction. While it is possible to play with no knowledge of Simes, Gens, or their world's history, technology, and political events, it would be like playing chess not knowing the movements of the pieces: very time consuming at first, labor intensive for the other players, and you would have to learn it all eventually if you were going to keep at it very long.
As a general guideline, it would be a good idea to have read one of the novels, or at least some of the online fanfiction, as well as 3-4 logs from your chosen scenario, before joining play.
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Isn't Sime~Gen protected by copyright law?
Yes, it is. The published Sime~Gen novels and short stories are copyright © by Jacqueline Lichtenberg, the original author. Most of the rights to the various fan-authored novels and short stories found on the web have also been handed over to Jacqueline. According to Jacqueline's copyright notice on simegen.com, the actual ownership of the writings lies with Sime~Gen Inc, a corporation formed by her and Jean Lorrah. Jacqueline is also currently attempting to establish Sime~GenTM as an unregistered trademark, a process which requires her to challenge any unauthorized or ambiguous use of the label which she becomes aware of.
How does this affect the game?
As with all written works, the game logs are copyright © by their original authors, the players. The rights to the logs have not been signed over to Jacqueline, but they are derivative of other work whose copyright is held by her. Our site acknowledges that by displaying Jacqueline's copyright notice along with ours. Click here to see the copyright information.
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How does our game compare to other RPG's?
Our game differs from some other role playing games in several ways. For one thing, there is no Game Master, only players who act as theoretical equals to co-author a story. This isn't to say that nobody is "driving" the action; some players tend to initiate and others react, and sometimes people trade off depending on mood or circumstance. Instead of predefined campaigns with definite goals and rewards, we ad-lib to create, real-time, a written work that is part never-ending story, part theatrical script. What happens is determined by the characters' personal interactions, desires and goals. Each character's personality, characteristics, history and abilities are entirely up to its player. There are no rulebooks, other than the bounds of the Sime~Gen Universe as established in the novels and fan fiction, and the gaming etiquette and punctuation conventions we have evolved over time. There are no dice; the course of events is decided entirely by the players via their characters' words, actions and emotions.
This isn't the only freeform role playing game on the web, or even the only one on IRC. Here are a couple of short articles from other freeform roleplaying sites. Their suggestions regarding gaming etiquette and the use of godlike super-characters is uncannily similar to our own. They probably learned these things gradually just like we did.
We are not the only game with logs posted online, either. Some gaming groups go so far as to rewrite their logs as fiction, while others simply post the raw logs. To explore the websites of other IRC roleplaying games, active and defunct, free-form and by-the-book, see the Open Directory Project's Games: Internet: Roleplaying: IRC category.
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How much do I need to know about role playing?
This is free-form roleplaying based largely upon the personal interactions between the characters. It occurs in a story-like setting but the plot and intended resolution have not been determined in advance. Because it is ad-lib and all players are considered equals as co-authors of it, trust and cooperation are extremely important. Generally speaking things work best if everybody is keeping the established background and character personalities in mind and is willing to compromise when problems come up. Here are some general hints:
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What is IRC? What's an IRC client?
IRC stands for Internet Relay Chat. The Internet Relay Chat network allows you to chat with groups of people all over the world, using the internet to transport your messages. Here's how it works:
First you install a piece of software called an "IRC client" on your computer. There are many different brands and styles of IRC clients but they all do the same basic 2 things: give you an easy control panel or command interface for chatting, and allow you to communicate with an IRC Server via your internet connection. Once you have installed your IRC client and connected to an IRC server, you can enter a chat room, or channel, and chat with anybody else who's in the same chatroom on the same server. If the server is networked to other servers, you can chat with anybody in that chat room on any of those servers. There are many large networks across the world that share hundreds of chat rooms and thousands of users. Our game is relatively small and simple. Because we only have a few people we run it on a stand-alone IRC server that is not networked to any others.
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Where I can find IRC client software that works for me?
IRC stands for Internet Relay chat. IRC client software is a program you run while you are online, that lets you chat with other people on the Internet. There are many different freeware or shareware IRC clients available. The easiest way to find one is probably to go to your favorite free software library and search on "IRC client". Or, here are some links that may prove useful.
Once you have installed your IRC client software you will have to actually be connected to the Internet for it to work. In other words, if your machine has a direct Internet connection you can run the IRC client software anytime, but if you must dial in to your ISP using a modem, you must first get online, then run the IRC client software.
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How should I configure my IRC client software?
Your IRC client will probably have various options which you can set to customize the system to your use. It is difficult to summarize these here because all the different clients will have different options. However, here is some general advice:
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Which IRC commands do I need to know?
Some IRC clients may be entirely point-and-click but many of them use typed commands. There is a standard set of commands for IRC but each client tends to have a few variations of its own. Here are some common ones that will be necessary for gaming:
/join #channelname (allows you to enter a chat channel of name "#channelname".)
/nick alias (allows you to change your alias or nickname to "alias". This can be done on the fly.)
/msg nick (allows you to send a private message to the player using the alias "nick"
/me eventsequence (causes it to appear as if you performed an action rather than speaking. For example if you were logged in as ASime and you typed /me walks into the room, the result would be "ASime walks into the room".)
Click here for an advanced guide to IRC commands. These may not be exactly the right syntax for your particular client software, but it will at least give you an idea of what is possible. See your client software's Help for more specific information.
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4) OK, I'm on IRC. How do I find the game?
Once you are logged in to the correct server, use your menu options or the /join command to get on one of the Sime~Gen gaming channels. Currently the official channel is #naros. On the rare occasions when two scenes are played simultaneously, we use #dam for the second scene. Also there is a channel called #secretpens which is set aside for general chat with people who frequent the Secret Pens.
Please, read this entire FAQ and at least one or two logs before typing anything in a gaming room during game-time. All the gamers thank you.
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5) What are "ops" and how do I get some?
Channel Operators are people who have been handed the ability to use some of the advanced IRC commands in order to help manage the channel. These can be identified by a special mark next to their names in the people-list on your IRC client. Although a channel technically needs only 1 or 2 such Operators at any given time, many people who are accustomed to being Opped on other channels feel insulted if they are not immediately Opped upon joining a new channel.
The current policy in #naros is for nobody to be Opped except for the logging robot. In some other channels in the past, there have been other policies, like Opping anybody who is known by the channel owners, or Opping anybody who plays regularly. If you find yourself in a situation where you think you should have been Opped but haven't, contact an Operator privately and ask (politely) for Ops.
Please note that under rare special circumstances a channel may be temporarily set to Moderated mode. In this mode, only Channel Operators may post messages to the channel and everybody else can only watch. The different clients have different methods of showing what modes a channel is in. Moderated mode is often represented by an "m". When it happens, it usually means there has been trouble with somebody making non-gaming related posts in a role playing channel during game time.
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I want to try the game. What should I do?
You'll want to have checked over the Sime~Gen, roleplaying and IRC parts of this FAQ and make sure you're up to speed on what you need to know about these subjects. Then, have a look at the active scenarios' pages and figure out which one you might like to start in. Currently the active scenario is Snake River Dam. Read some logs from your chosen scenario, particularly the most recent ones so you'll know what's been happening in the game. It will be helpful to have reviewed the background information on the scenario: technology, society, where it fits into the Sime~Gen timeline, etc. Then, when you feel comfortable with all of the above, get ahold of somebody listed as a contact for that scenario and find out when you can get in on a game!
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When and where is the game played?
The game is played in #naros on the garlen.roguechannel.com IRC server. It is played on Monday and Thursday nights from 9PM to midnight, Friday during the day (exact time varies, usually set up on the preceding Thursday) and Sunday from 10AM to noon. All times are given in USA Eastern (New York) time. Here is a time zone map if you need one.
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How can I get ahold of somebody associated with the game?
See our Contacts page.
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What if I want to play in an "inactive" scenario?
Most of the inactive scenarios are inactive because the people who'd been playing them lost interest. Quite often the players, or at least their characters, have moved on to greener pastures. That having been said, it wouldn't hurt to send the inactive scenario's players an email expressing an interest in reviving it.
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What would be good for a first character?
Consider your first few characters a sort of "trial run". Don't feel locked into keeping them if you think of better ideas. There's no reason you can't branch out into more roles as you gain confidence. Also, don't blow your best character idea immediately. If you have a special someone you want to play, wait until you've been playing a few weeks and have some experience before you bring that one out.
Start out with a low-impact role - either a small, unimportant person or somebody who, whatever their importance, won't be sticking around long enough to cause major controversy and/or entanglements. There are two reasons for this. First of all, why stress yourself out? Play a simple character while you get a feel for how the game works, and figure out whether it's something you could get into doing long term, and think about what sorts of characters would work in that scenario. Secondly, everybody (new and old alike) is already going to have to reshape what they want to do to fit each other. It helps if the new player's starter character isn't difficult to work into an existing plot. [Examples of difficult characters to fit into existing plot: The World Controller, the Sectuib in Zeor, a replacement Donor for a channel who already has a Donor played by somebody else... you get the idea.]
Try to pick a first character that fits your chosen scenario somewhat. For example, a person wanting to buy Gens would be a pretty exotic character in anything but the Genview scenario. A high First Order channel or Donor would be out of place in Householding Naros as anything but a guest. A child would probably be out of place in a Sime Center based scenario as anything but a patient or visitor. While characters that are an impossible fit can be fun under certain circumstances, they probably aren't a good idea the first time around.
One more thing... Mary Sues can exist in gaming too. Don't name your character after yourself, give her super-powers, etc. It won't go over well!
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I am an experienced roleplayer. Anything I should keep in mind?
As a general rule, the most exciting characters are those who pose an interesting dilemma for existing characters, or have goals or dreams which have some effect upon the scenario as they are worked for. Completely passive characters which fail to interact in any meaningful way with other characters, or completely dominant characters which annihilate existing plot lines and/or balances of power, are probably not good choices. Stay away from magical, mythical, and supernatural characters. Unless they are handled exactly right, they break most of the rules of S~G canon and hence our rules.
Your goals as a roleplayer are as follows: To have a good time, to entertain the others by helping to create an interesting scene, and to see what else will happen as your characters try to achieve their goals and dreams. If you feel more comfortable working for a set goal (as in AD&D and similar games), study the current plot structure and pick something for your character to have as an attainable dream.
Don't feel like you have to stick with one character. It is difficult to come up with a single character who is suitable for all scenes. Having a variety of characters to pick from will help you maximize your enjoyment of various plot situations and combinations of other people's characters. Also, many scenes are made, or broken, by experienced players' ability to step up to the bat with ad-libbed walk-on or one-time-only characters.
Keep an open mind. Starting in a new type of game always requires some adjustment.
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Can I use other people's characters?
Do not roleplay other people's characters unless they ask you to or otherwise give you permission. Often people do give permission so it's fine to ask, but don't be surprised if the person says no, particularly when it's their main character. It has been established that it is okay to appropriate NPC's (non player characters, or people who have been mentioned but never actually roleplayed) for oneself, and turn them into characters. This is also true of friends and relatives of existing characters. In any case, when playing somebody else's character or picking up an already-mentioned character, it is a very good idea to re-read that part of the logs to make sure you have all the background and character traits straight.
Do not tell other people what their own characters are doing while they are right there. For example, do not say [Alea blushes furiously] when Alea's player is right there to make Alea respond her own way. This is different from telling the character they saw or heard something... such as "[Briel hears an immense crash from the vicinity of the storeroom]"... that type of thing has generally been considered acceptable. Within reason... obviously don't say [Tramila doesn't zlin the 3rd Order Donor is lying] when everybody knows Tramila is a First Order channel.
Do not make characters do anything out of character while their player is absent. Sometimes it is fine to fake an essential character's presence while the player is absent (like a Donor if the channel is online, or someone in the Sime Center administration or staff who is needed for some particular conversation). For example, since Veraik is the Center's controller, /me goes and gets permission from Veraik to have the day off is acceptable. However, it is extremely important to avoid making the character do anything OUT of character while the player is gone. For example you'd probably get in trouble if you stated out of the blue, /me walks into the lobby and sees Veraik up on the filing cabinets playing the Ukelele in the nude.
If somebody does this to your character, it is annoying but all may not be lost. First, look at what they said and determine whether it can be later discounted as hearsay. In that case it would be up to you to counter the misinformation by demonstrating that the opposite is, in fact, true. For example, if somebody else's character claims your character "never pays any attention during donations", then you would have to demonstrate, over time, that your character does pay attention and that other person is mistaken (and object verbally to the statement if you happened to be around when it was said). This is much the same as in real life. However, it gets a bit more tricky if somebody does something in play that forces your character to have done something, and leaves absolutely no recourse for correction. See the Veraik-playing-Ukelele example above. In that case, it is best to go behind the scenes and quietly inform the other player that their action was in bad form. If you are lucky, they will take it back. If not, you must find some other way to accommodate the occurrence: come up with a plausible explanation for it, treat it as a momentary lapse on the part of the character, or as a last resort, pretend it didn't happen.
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What if two players' lines contradict each other?
Sometimes, due to net lag or other reasons, two characters will commit actions that contradict each other... for example:
The simplest way to avoid this is to be careful not to grab too much game time in one sentence... with more conservative sentences it might have gone more like this:
AGen would then see that ASime had attacked him, and make whatever adjustment post seems appropriate at the time, for example:
The rest of the attack sequence could continue from there. In the original example, if the blooper has already occurred and there is no obvious automatic out, then one or the other of the players will have to retract their last line. Most of the established players will do this automatically up to a point. If you are new, be wary of forcing this on the same established players several times in a row; it creates bad feelings.
Every once in a while someone will grab a bunch of game time in a sentence just to make it impossible for the other people to legally react to an action of theirs. This is tolerated on an occasional basis but is generally considered bad form.
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If your question hasn't been answered here....
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