Policies
Obviously, this is a game. Games are meant to be fun and diverting from the Real World (not the reality TV series, but those other things that happen when you step away from the computer). We'd like to keep the game friendly. Instead of a bunch of rules here, let's just take a breath and remember why we play. Oh, yeah, remember to let that breath out. Not all of us are vampires.
While characters on the game may hate each other with the fiery passion of hate and scenes may turn dire and serious, we are not our characters. We do understand that people get very attached to characters and plots that they have, but please remember that there are people behind those screens, and they should therefore be treated as such OOCly. That being said, staff takes harassment very seriously. That is, it will not be tolerated. If you feel as if you're being harassed, please come to us and we'll sort it out as quickly as possible.
Drama happens. We're playing on a game based off a show known for its sometimes soap-operatic qualities. And we, as staff, have played on enough games to know that drama - no matter how much any can try to prevent it - will occur. However, we cannot stress enough how important it is to keep a line of communication open and how easily it can solve many issues. Everyone loves to hear that a plot or scene they're running is well-received and, on the opposite hand, staff and other players can't know something they're doing isn't appreciated unless they're told. Talk to each other! And talk to staff! Honestly, we do want to know what you think.
Angel has the rating of TV-MA (or PG-13 for you movie people). We'd like to keep that rating here. That's not to say there's no sex or violence or swearing, but if there's going to be excessive amounts of any of the above in your log, please give people a warning so they know what they're getting themselves into. Censor, fade to black, or dramatically cut before anything too crazy happens.
TinySex (TS) (roleplaying explicit sexual acts on the game) simply is not allowed. Don't do it. Period. Again, if your character(s) get into a situation that looks like it's going to culminate in some horizontal mambo, fade it to black at an appropriate time.
Activity is key for a game. Therefore, the policy for idling out is 30 days for OCs. If you haven't talked to staff or set yourself vacation and haven't logged your character in for 30 days, they will be nuked.
FCs are important to the game activity, too, and there is a higher standard for activity. Keep your Feature Characters active. If you've been gone without notice for 21 days, we will put your FC back in the available column.
Angel is the property of Joss Whedon, the WB, and a whole lot of other people who are not us. This game is in no way affiliated with any of those channels or peoples. This is merely a game by fans for fans and is in no way intended to be anything but. Obviously if anyone was making money off this, we'd be out spending it as opposed to being online. So. Disclaimed.
As we are a game that has no true stat system, we mostly operate on player consent. When RPing, make sure that you clear any action you take that will affect another player, either magically or physically. Character death is also by consent basis, but as this is a Whedon-based game and death is very much a part of the plot and we'd like to keep it that way. Favorite characters die and the unexpected happens, be open to change!
General
"In this city, you better learn to get along. Because L.A.'s got it all: the glamor and the grit, the big breaks and the heartaches, the sweet young lovers and the nasty, ugly, hairy fiends that suck out your brain through your face. It's all part of the big wacky variety show we call Los Angeles. You never know what's coming next. And let's admit it, folks isn't that why we love it?"
Beneath all its glitter and neon, LA has a dark and seedy side. Bright-eyed young men and women come in to seek their fame and fortune, and sometimes they just disappear and no one comes looking. That is, unless you help the helpless. Or you knew them. Or you're seeking some revenge. Or maybe you're just looking for your next snack.
Whether you're looking to level the city in order for the powerful evil take over, or you're trying to save it from almost certain destruction, Angel City has something for everyone. Two months after the world was saved from crossing over into a hell dimension by the heroic efforts of those in Sunnydale (which led to the death of Buffy), some crucial information gathered by those at Wolfram and Hart came to light and proved that there is still much to fight for. LA and the world is still very much in danger, and both sides will need all the help they can get if they want to triumph.
Set a few months after Season 2 of Angel and Season 5 of Buffy, Angel City MUSH takes place in 2001 in the heart of LA. Vampires, werewolves, Watchers, witches, demons, stars and regular humans all live, laugh, fight, and even die on the city streets.
Angel and the gang returned from Pylea as heroes, having rescued Cordelia and Fred from being slaves in another dimension. However, upon their return they're met by a sorrowful Willow who tells them that Buffy has died closing a portal that would have destroyed the world. With the world saved, it would seem that everything would go back to normal - but that's not the case. Demon and Vampire activity is just the same as before, if not more prominent.
Though demons and supernatural creatures roam the streets of LA with relatively little molestation (it's LA, everyone just assumes you're in the movie business) that doesn't mean the general population believes in monsters or the things that go bump in the night. Those who can afford it and need the protection go to Wolfram and Hart - but know that they'll pay a price sooner or later for it. The helpless go to Angel Investigations, where they're sure to get a Champion on their case. Everyone else? They make it on their own, one way or another.
Magic is very prevalent in Angel and there are many different levels of it. To try and describe all the ways that magic is used on the show (and therefore on the game) would probably take up an entire wiki in and of itself. Instead, we'll give the very basics - if you have any further questions about what will and will not work within the game, feel free to ask staff.
There are two types of people: those who are born with the ability to use magic and those who aren't. Those who aren't born with magical proficiency aren't prohibited from using magic, however they must rely on texts and books as opposed to natural talent. The same spell that is easy for someone born with natural magic ability will be doubly as hard for someone born without. Those without the innate talent will tire more easily and be less likely to pull off a very complex spell.
As Angel City MUSH has no true stats system, it's important to have information about how combat is handled in the game. Almost everything is consent-based: fighting, death, love, etc.. However, combat and plots should still retain some realism (or as realistic as Angel can get, that is). Fighting things like werewolves and vampires should be hard. Normal humans who haven't been trained in fighting demons and vampires should find it basically impossible to defeat something unnatural unless they have help. The most they should be able to do is hopefully stun it and run away.
We understand, however, that there will be times when people will want determining factors not related to player consent. For those such moments, we have a programmed dice system that will be based on the apparent skill level and experience of your character in whatever action it is that they are taking. For example, if your character has had specialized training in a martial art, you would roll the high-skill die in a situation where your character is fighting someone; whereas if your character doesn't know which end is up on a gun, they would roll the low-skill die in the event that they ever had to fire one.
Angel City MUSH takes place in 2001 after the season 2 finale of Angel and the season 5 finale of Buffy. Buffy has died closing the portal opened by Dawn's blood; Angel, Gunn, Lorne, Cordelia and Wesley have gone and come back from Pylea and rescued Fred; Wesley has taken over Angel Investigations. As far as this canon on the MUSH is concerned, everything after those seasons may not happen here.
Characters
When you're ready to apply, just head into char gen! (If you're looking to play a Feature, talk to staff!)
For approval, you need to submit a description, background, personality and (if you're looking to play someone supernatural) a power description. None of these have to be novel length. Characters grow as you write them, but we do need a general idea of where your character will fit into the game.
Briefly, what we're looking for in your application is: where you're character came from, what they're doing in LA now, their strengths and their weaknesses. If they're a vampire or a werewolf or cursed somehow, how did that happen? If you have some sort of supernatural power, what can you do with it? More importantly, what are its limitations? For example, Vampires are unnaturally strong, hard to kill and live very long lives. However, cut off their head or stake them in the heart and they're dust. They can't stand crosses and they have this thing about suntans.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask!
Our alt policy is five alts per person. Additionally, we have a few other rules:
- Two of your five alts can be supernatural (this includes witches).
- Players may have one Feature character. Features count to both your alt total as well as your supernatural total (if that character is supernatural).
- Alts should not have any conflict with each other, as no alts are allowed to be in the same scene.
- They can not knowingly benefit from each other (meaning you can't have one character be a double agent who reports to another one of your characters).
- There is a cool-down period of one week before apping another character. Sometimes the muse strikes, but this is to try and put a balm on that crazy disease known as alt-itis.
So you want to play a Feature! Excellent! The first thing you'll want to do (after reading this file) is talk to staff, who will set you up with a charbit so you can start your application. It's the same character generation for everyone else, but once submitted, all features go through an audition. This isn't us judging your RP or writing skills, it's to find the right person for the right part. Remember, you can only have one Feature, which adds to your alt limit as well as your limit for supernatural characters. After audition and approval, all Features will go through a two-week trial period after getting on the grid to see how well they work out in the game setting itself. After two weeks, the Feature is officially considered locked in until a player chooses to drop them, they idle out, or they are killed.
Some Features from Buffy will be available for play here. People from the main Scooby Gang will stay in Sunnydale, however the more minor characters (like Oz and Harmony) will be applicable. If there's someone you're interested in bringing to LA, talk to a staff member and we'll try to work it out! Please see the +features command in-game for a more complete and up-to-date list of available FCs.
| Character Name | Played By | Available |
|---|---|---|
| Angel | David Boreanaz | Yes |
| Cordelia Chase | Charisma Carpenter | No |
| Wesley Wyndam-Pryce | Alexis Denisof | No |
| Charles Gunn | J. August Richards | No |
| Winifred "Fred" Burkle | Amy Acker | No |
| Lorne | Andy Hallett | No |
| Lindsey McDonald | Christian Kane | Yes |
| Lilah Morgan | Stephanie Romanov | Yes |
| Holland Manners | Sam Anderson | Yes |
| Kate Locksley | Elizabeth Rohm | Yes |
| Merl | Matthew James | Yes |
| Gavin Park | Daniel Dae Kim | Yes |
| Anne Steele | Julia Lee | Yes |
| David Nabbit | David Herman | Yes |
| Gwen Raiden | Alexa Davalos | No |
| Knox | Jonathan Woodard | Yes |
| Faith | Eliza Dushku | No |
| Oz | Seth Green | No |
| Harmony | Mercedes McNab | Yes |
These are the concepts that we're not allowing to be apped on the game at this time:
- Slayers.
- Vampires with Souls.
- Demi-Gods.
- Natural Born Magic Users. That's not to say you can't do magic. Just about anyone can. Until we get a balance again, however, we're putting a moratorium on this concept.
These are some character concepts that are restricted. Please talk to staff before applying for them:
- Watchers and Former Watchers. Yes, we know that being a Watcher is a very good way to get in on the Occult Action. However, there shouldn't be that many of them. We'd like to nip the problem of five million Watchers in the kitchen before someone pokes out an eye with their really large copy of demonology.
- Demons. This is not to say you can't app a demon. Some (like the subtle Vengeance Demons) should be fine to slide on through, however we don't want to see too many Demons from Hell. One or two should be fine.
So you keep hearing about your two supernatural character alt limit and you're wondering what counts toward it. Or, you just want to know more about what playing a supernatural character means here at Angel City. The different types of supernatural characters available for application are: Vampires, Demons, Witches/Warlocks and Cursed.
Vampire are undead creatures that have been sired by other vampires. They are immortal, impervious to sickness and most injuries, and extraordinarily strong. Soulless, they are naturally evil and immoral. It is possible for a vampire to overcome their natural urges to kill and drain blood, but it's extremely hard and there is rarely (if ever) a vampire that is 'truly' good — even if they have somehow acquired a soul through curse or trials. It's possible for them to live off of animal blood as opposed to human blood, but the hunger and the desire for human blood will always be there. It's a core part of their being. The only way to kill a vampire is to put a stake through its heart, cut off its head or push it out into the sunlight. Crosses, holy water and the Bible are all enough to hurt or stun these Creatures of the Night, but they're not fatal.
There are a variety of demons in the world of Angel. Vengeance Demons grant wishes of vengeance to the specific group of people they feel the most attuned with. Some demons make people dance, some invade dreams. All of them have strengths and weaknesses. If you have an idea for a demon, feel free to talk to staff to see if it's playable!
While almost anyone with a spellbook can practice rudimentary magic, Witches and Warlocks are those that are naturally gifted in the art of spellcasting. They can perform spells without a book and they are able to complete intense and very complicated magic that those that have only studied it cannot. They tire less easily and while they still need to learn most of their spells from books, they have an innate knowledge and ability to cast. Magic can be addictive, however, and some may become crazed off of power from it. Also, even for an adept magic caster it's possible to mess up and cause serious damage to property or people. Concentration and knowledge are still necessary to perform a spell properly.
Werewolves are people who seem to be normal human beings for most of the month. They display no other differences from other people until the moon's three day full moon cycle. Even then, during the day werewolves are normal. However, as soon as night falls, they become entirely beast-like. They become super strong and impossible to slow down or kill unless you have silver bullets handy. They have enhanced sense and can smell and hear better than human beings and they can see in the dark. Whenever a person changes into their werewolf form, nothing of their human personality remains - they become mindless hunters after their prey, which is just about everyone and everything that comes into their path.
Some human beings have been cursed by others, others have merely been born with a 'gift'. Those we define as cursed are people like Gwen who was born with the ability to manipulate electricity, however remains unable to touch another human being for fear of electrocuting them. People who are human beings but have some sort of extraordinarily ability would be classified as cursed.
