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FAQ
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Please note that information on this page is subject to change in response to feedback or otherwise, so check back on this about a week before reserves open!
ⶠGeneral Info
What is Once Upon?
Once Upon is a short-term, murder mystery style murdergame that takes place in the lush, magical world of Aira Niluc. Characters will be greeted by a grand banquet when they arrive, making it apparent that they're a valued guest of some sort even if they don't remember coming here. In addition, guests will have the sense that they have come here to fulfill a wish of theirs, and that this may have been something they agreed to of their own volition...
Setting-wise, the game will contain locations with a fantastic/fairy tale aesthetic, mixed in with some classic fairy lore. Expect plenty of magical and eccentric locations in addition to some of the more standard murdergame locations.
As a murdergame, please be aware that your character may die during the course of the game. In addition, this is a scapegoating murdergame, which means there is the possibility that your character may be voted off even if they were not the culprit. However, the dead will have their own role to play, so donât think that there still wonât be plenty to do! In addition, please be aware that achieving a golden end is not guaranteed, and that permadeath is possible (although we still have a graveyard, so no need to worry about permadeath if your character is killed).
How does the game work?
Good question! The game alternates between weekday mingles and weekend murder mysteries. The game runs on a 1:1 IC:OOC day ratio, and the weekly schedule looks like this:
Monday-Thursday: Mingle (12 PM EST)
Friday: Investigation (3 PM EST)
Saturday: Trial (12 PM EST)
Sunday: Execution (3 PM EST)
At the start of every week, the mods will post the mingle log on the game community where characters will have the chance to build CR, explore the setting and find plot threads. When Friday rolls around, characters will investigate the murder of their fellow abductee(s) in preparation for Saturdayâs trial. During the course of the trial, characters get to discuss the case and cast their votes for whoever they deem responsible for the murder(s), who will then be executed.
This will go on until the final week, which will be murder-free and will be focused on wrapping up the gameâs plot.
Wait a second. I noticed you didn't mention anything about a motive announcement up there.
That's because we won't have motives in a traditional sense! As part of the game's premise, each character will need to come in with a strong wish that would motivate them to participate. When we say "strong wish", we mean something along the lines of a long-held ambition, dreams of world peace or an intense desire for revenge rather than wishing for a cup of boba on a hot day. ...Unless of course, your character would kill for a cup of boba, then by all means. More details on this can be found on our Applications page.
Okay, got it. But speaking of endgame and final weeks... when will the game start and when will it finish?
The game will start on Saturday, May 29th, 2021 and is set to run for 6-7 weeks, which means it will end on either July 3 or July 10 depending on how things work out.
How do I apply?
Good question! First of all, reserves are mandatory for apping in, and they will open at 3:00 PM EST on Saturday, May 22nd. Reserves will stay open until the end of the app period or until we hit our cap. We will also allow one proxy per person, so if you have a friend who would like to join but is unable to make the reserve time, feel free to submit a reserve on their behalf!
The application post will be opened at the same time as reserves and will close on Friday, May 28th at 11:59 PM EST.
Speaking of caps, what is it? And are there any cast or canon caps?
We have a character cap of 30 slots (not including mod characters), and a cap of one character per player. If we do not hit the cap, we will run with as few as 20 players. As for cast caps, weâre limiting it to 3 characters per canon and 5 characters per franchise. This means that series with individual continuities contained within them will share the 5 character cap even if the characters do not all come from the same entry in the franchise. For example, that means that only 5 characters from the Final Fantasy series would be allowed, regardless of whether or not they originated from the same game.
Who can I app?
Characters must be 16 or over, with a mentality to match. However, we have a maturity clause section on our app if players want to make a case for characters that are 14-15 years old. Allowances will also be made for cases where the character appears 16 or over and has the mentality despite it not being their actual age (e.g. robots like 9S from Nier Automata, clones, etc.). Characters also need to be alive at the canon point that they are being taken from.
In addition, large characters will be shrunk so that they can make use of human-sized facilities, although you can still have your 8-foot tall person bump their head on the ceiling or something; weâre thinking more along the lines of Transformer-sized characters that wouldnât even fit into a building.
Furthermore, we do not take OCs, AU versions of characters or customizable protagonists.
Finally, if you arenât sure that your character(s) fit the applicability guidelines, please contact us and we can discuss your choice(s) in more detail!
What happens to my characterâs powers?
Canât use âem, unfortunately! Characters will just have to deal with being completely nerfed to human levels during their entire stay, although some physical characteristics can remain, even if they may not work as intended. For example, characters with wings might only be able to hover a short distance above the ground instead of being able to fly to the second floor of a building. Characters that are superhumanly strong can retain some of their strength as well, but it must still be within human limits. Also, if your character has any special needs or accommodations, feel free to leave a message on this post or message the mods about it so we can discuss options.
Is there an Activity Check (AC)? What does it look like?
Yes, there is! AC will be due every week on Tuesday at 6:00 PM EST, and should be submitted under the appropriate week header on the Activity Check post. Keep in mind that only threads that take place within weekly posts and afterparties can be used; comments from Investigations, Trials and Private Conversations (including those with the Masterminds) will not count towards AC.
For those on the living side, AC consists of 20 comments from your character, which should be spread over 2-3 threads (all with different characters). Comment spam also only counts as 1 comment when it used in a thread. For those who are dead, you only need to comment to the AC post just so we know youâre still around.
If you are unable to make AC for a given week due to extenuating circumstances, please contact us privately just so we know whatâs going on!
For more details on how to submit AC and to see a sample of the format, please refer to our Activity Check page!
What about AC rewards? How will those work?
Good question! Weâll be using a hybrid between a shop system and a gacha, with set prices for particular items. ICly, characters will receive crystals that they can leave at the shop with an order for what they want to purchase. One such purchase will be a gacha roll that can net you character regains. OOCly, we will have a shop post with the list of available items and their costs, where you can also put in requests and link the relevant threads.
The exchange rate is 1 crystal = every 10 comments. However, the comments need not all be in one thread, but threads must have 5 comments or more from your character before they can be used for this purpose. So for example, 2 threads with 5 comments each will net you 1 credit, but 2 threads with 3 and 7 comments respectively will not get you anything because the 3 comment thread is too short to count.
Threads from PCs, investigations and trials cannot be used for AC rewards. Threads can only be linked once when redeeming for rewards, but there is no time limit towards how old they threads can be, so feel free to backtag and save up those crystals!
Incidentally, the living may not be the only ones who can make use of this...
Are there any limits to what can be put as a personal regain?
Yup, there are. Magical items will lose all of their supernatural powers and electronics wonât be able to function. Living things are a no-go as well, so no PokĂ©mon or mascot characters, sorry! We will also be limiting it to objects that are small enough to be carried or worn by the character, so a backpack full of textbooks is fine and a giant-ass JRPG sword is also fine, but no vehicles and the like. And of course, when in doubt, please ask us about it!
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ⶠGame Mechanics
How do murders work?
Good question! We'll be using a murder proposal system for this game, which means that any player is free to sign their character up for murder each week. We will have a form for you to fill out on our Murder Proposals page, but the expectation is that you come in with an idea or scenario of how your character would murder, along with a few potential victims. The deadline for any murder proposals on a given week is Tuesday at 3:00 PM EST.
We will then contact you if your proposal is accepted for that week and discuss the details with you before putting you in touch with your victim(s) in Plurk, after which everyone will be able to put together the case details. A draft of the case will also be due on Thursday afternoon (6:00 PM EST) so that we have time to check it over and provide feedback, with Thursday night being a hard deadline for the final draft. You may still make some last minute changes if needed, but please give us a heads up so we can make sure the correct evidence is distributed.
ICly, characters will be visited by the Sandman and forced to fall asleep during on murder nights. Players can submit a post to the screened Thursday Night Check-in post to track where characters end up on murder night, otherwise it will be assumed they stayed in their quarters for the night. More details can be found on the post itself!
If there are a large number of proposals for a given week, be aware that you may be added onto a murder queue and have your case shifted to a subsequent week. Generally speaking we will contact all case participants by Tuesday evening (EST) at the latest, and if you are chosen as a victim, barring extenuating circumstances there is no opting out out. We also reserve the right to request changes to your proposal based on game conditions. In the case that there are no proposals queued up for a week, the mods will decide who gets to be involved in that week's case, on the basis of victim/killer preferences on the app. ICly this will be cautioned against, for reasons, and on an OOC level we highly encourage murder in order to best maintain the momentum of the game.
Incidentally, there will also be no peace week at the start of the game, so there will be a case on week one! Don't worry about murder proposals week one though, as the mods have that handled—unless you have something in mind from the start in which case we won't stop you!
What will the investigations be like?
Every Friday at 3:00 PM EST, the mods will post up an investigation log where players can tag in with a location to search for the victim(s). Once the victim(s) have been found, a mod-posted body announcement will go up with a brief autopsy file (a lĂ Danganronpa style), and location top-levels will be posted to help streamline the search.
Once the location top-levels have been posted, players are free to divvy up the investigations ICly and OOCly. Incidentally, evidence will be missable since mods will not be posting a âlocation clearâ note to indicate that all evidence in the area has been found, so search carefully!
Tell me a little more about the trials.
Trials will take place every Saturday starting at 12:00 PM EST and will last for 7 hours maximum, although we will end early if all votes are in and discussion has finished. At the start of the trial, the mods will post a top-level where all evidence can be declared, and additional top levels for NPC announcements and interactions. After that, characters can freely discuss how they thought the murder was carried out and by whom, culminating in a vote for who gets to be executed for the deed. Any living character can be voted for and scapegoating will be permitted. Incidentally, voting isnât strictly mandatory, but things might not end well if everyone tries to abstain...
In regards to the NPC, they will be around in case any clarification, privacy screens or heckling is needed, so feel free to bother them.
What's up with the execution being on Sunday?
Well, that's because we'll be doing player-run executions! At the end of each case, players can volunteer to have their character act as the executioner on Sunday. This volunteering is purely OOC, so feel free to put your character up to it even if they ICly wouldn't want to. We will then randomize the executioner and ICly reveal who got the lucky honor. The executioner player and the voted player will then be put in contact with each other so they can discuss the details, and they will then thread out the execution on Sunday at 3 PM EST.
Executions will be primarily player-driven, although we will have a place for character who are not directly involved to popcorn, cry and what have you!
Can I volunteer to be in a case?
Of course! Feel free to contact us through the mod journal, Plurk or Discord and we can work things out with you!
Are there going to be any roles?
There sure are! You can opt into being considered for a role through the application, but please be aware that not everyone will receive one. As characters with roles will get some additional plot and/or privileges, note that any player that receives a role will correspondingly be held to a higher standard of activity compared to other players. Incidentally, not all roles will be picked at game start and some may even rotate, so there will be further opportunities to get a role as the game goes on!
However, even if you don't receive a role, don't fret! There's still plenty of other avenues that can be used if you are interested in digging into the plot. This includes private conversations with the NPCs and explorations.
Explorations, huh. So how does that work?
Itâs pretty easy! During the weekly log posts, you can include an exploration prompt in your top level; just make sure you specify where they will be exploring and/or what they will be doing. And most importantly, please remember to add âExplorationâ or something similar in the subject line so we can easily see it; we do not guarantee that we will be able to get back to you promptly if thatâs missing from your top level.
Lastly, please try to limit yourself to exploring only 1-2 locations a week and during the earlier parts of the week (i.e. Monday to Wednesday); this is primarily for logistical reasons because it gives us more time to spend on each investigation and ensures that we can finish up the threads.
Beyond that, please feel free to ask us questions about the setting on Plurk or Discord if you donât think it warrants a more involved investigation!
I have another question that hasnât been mentioned here!
No problem, you can always leave a comment on this post or contact one of us (Limon
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Items need not be something they've actually used.
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