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Ask Dove: Game Premise & FAQ
BE CAREFUL MAKING WISHES IN THE DARK.
Waking the Dead is a mixed White Wolf campaign set in the Philippines, with a strong leaning towards the themes of Hunter: the Vigil and World of Darkness. It revolves around Hunters and the organizations that they belong to, and how they seek to police the affairs of human beings and supernaturals in a world that is reeling from making one too many mistakes in light of the breaking of the Veil between the World of Light and the World of Darkness.
The original tabletop campaign takes several cues from the original stories of its ST, copies of which may or may not be circulating around online if you know who to ask and where to look. At present, the first chapter - Waking the Dead 1.0 - has already finished. Waking the Dead 2.0 is currently in progress.
Waking the Dead: Welcome to the New Age is an OC-based DWRP that picks up after the events of Waking the Dead 2.0, in the year 2066, six years after two really big historical events: a major war between humans and supernaturals, and the resurgence of a terrible threat to the entirety of the Fifth World. The basic premise is that anyone who joins this campaign has grown up in the "New Age", a world where human beings and supernaturals are supposed to get along. Interested players are free to be whatever they want within this setting, although there will be a strong preference due to the inclination of the game towards Hunter characters, eventual or otherwise.
An extensive history of the Fifth World and how its events differ from the world that we know can be found here.
HOW DOES MY CHARACTER FIGURE INTO ALL OF THIS?
As mentioned above, your character, depending on his or her age - either grew up in the so-called "New Age", or finds himself or herself standing in the aftermath of the dawn of the New Age and its effects with the not-too-distant memory of what things "used to be like" before the things that went bump in the night became very, horrifyingly real. This also means that you're either a full on human and you're going to stay that way, you're a human being on the brink of becoming something else entirely, or you're already a supernatural in a world where you are, more often than not, the despised minority.
It's 2066, and for whatever reason, you either work in or live on the Falner Estate - that is, the power base of Netsach. Falner used to be an exclusive compound in a co-located space between Metro Manila in the Philippines, Paris in France, Berlin in Germany, and London in England: the only people who could live and work there were people who were connected to Netsach. After June 12, however, Netsach - in compliance with the wishes of Pax Deorum and the Wiseman's Committee of the Methuselah - opened its doors to all Keepers of the Vigil and their loved ones, and civilians, supernatural or otherwise, with explicit permission to build a new live on the grounds of the estate.
You could be an operative licensed with any one of the conspiracies of the Vigil, or the you could be an average Jane or Joe who happens to be related to one, or calls one a friend. You could also be someone who has his or her reasons for hating all Keepers of the Vigil, and - by extension - hating this so-called New Age that everyone lives in. There is, as well, the possibility that you're perfectly neutral about this supernatural/deadwalker business, and now Falner is your new work place or home. Whatever works for you works for us.
HOW IS THIS GOING TO WORK?
Generally speaking, Waking the Dead: Welcome to the New Age will be a DWRP that uses a few elements of tabletop gaming. The elements of choice are stats (hence the need for an involved character creation process, and a character sheet), dice rolls (to determine the element of chance), and experience (experience points will be rewarded according to the circumstance, as a means to advance one's character).
The pace of Welcome to the New Age will be slow and plot-driven, with provisions for sandboxing and, well, shenanigans. Its structure is comm-based, with a network comm for extra roleplaying purposes and an ongoing mission system for acquiring experience, pushing the plot forward, and developing character relationships. The game will also employ a day change system, to represent the passage of time within Waking the Dead's universe.
There are no activity checks: experience points will simply be given to whoever participates in the game, and players can drift in and out as they please.
All IC posts, threads, logs, and whatnot are going to be placed in their respective communities - we'll have a comm for network posts, and a comm for all in-game interactions in the form of logs. You're welcome to thread using action tags or prose tags, but please stay consistent with the chosen format of the player that you are tagging at the moment.
All OOC announcements, plotting and whatever else, along with whatever crazy shenanigans and memes that we come up with, can be placed onoverheardinthegreathall.
For an in-depth look at the Game Mechanics of Welcome to the New Age, refer to this post. A post on some of the basics of White Wolf together with pertinent reference links will follow shortly.
CAN MY CHARACTER DIE IN WAKING THE DEAD?
They most definitely can, and - as a cautionary note - unless you awaken as a Card or a Sin-Eater, get turned into a vampire, are resurrected by a Benediction OR opt for the Second Option, deaths are permanent in this game. The Fifth World's a dangerous place whether you're a hunter or not. Falner may be the safest place on the Fifth World, but it's not like you can stay there forever...
Or. Well. You can, but we're pretty sure that even Falner's going to get boring for your character eventually.
WHAT IS THE "SECOND OPTION"?
Death is regulated with perfect precision in the Fifth World, mostly because of the presence of two Reapers and the vessel of Death Himself. As such, on an OOC level, you are free, as player, to request for making plot provisions for the Second Option. This means that your character will come back to life, alive and well. The only damage you're probably going to suffer is, you know, remembering how it felt to die and pesky personal ties and all. No big deal, right?
Granted, beyond Death and his Reapers and beyond Awakening as a Card or a Sin-Eater in-game (or heck, being turned into a vampire), there are other individuals in the Fifth World who have it within their power to resurrect you. Their methods, however, won't be as "safe" as the Second Option.
HOW DOES HOUSING WORK IN THE GAME?
Netsach operatives who have been assigned to Falner (regardless of whether they're from the British division, the French division, the German division, or the Philippine division) have the option to live within the capital city of their division, at the barracks in Behemoth on the estate grounds, or in property that they have purchased in the West District.
Operatives from other conspiracies who have been assigned to the power bases of their conspiracies located within Falner must live within the barracks of their power base, or in property that they have purchased in the West District.
Students of Balamb - Netsach's Hunter Academy - are assigned dormitory rooms for the duration of their run at Balamb. Once they've "graduated", they're required to find another place to stay.
Civilian characters always live somewhere within the West District.
Temporary lodgings can be secured by staying at Falner's Guest House in the Central District, or by staying at one of the hotels, inns or motels in the South District (close to the Main Gate) or at Falner Port (up in Falner Forest, North End).
SO YOU CAN LEAVE FALNER.
Yep! It's a free world, and it's not like your job - regardless of whatever it will be in-game - isn't probably going to take you places. Your character is also free to travel whenever they like - unless they're in trouble with the law, of course.
Falner has access points to every major city in the world, but - unless you're somebody with clearance from a relevant authority figure - you're going to travel out the hard way. The "hard way" basically means taking a car out the Main Gate to Metro Manila, or taking a plane or boat out to wherever from Falner Port.
HOW IS MONEY EARNED IN-GAME, AND HOW DOES IT WORK?
Hunting is a profession just like being a police man or a soldier is, and all conspiracies pay their operatives a monthly salary along with bonuses for completing engagements. Students of Balamb also get a monthly allowance, as to initiates of any conspiracy that's represented in Falner.
"Regular" Joes and Janes who aren't too hot on being Keepers but would like to help them out can opt to take a job with Henry's Abubot, Vice Enterprises, or Verges Productions. Information on them will be available shortly!
Civilians in-game that are not interested in Henry's Abubot, Vice Enterprises, or Verges Productions can get pretty much any job under the sun. Falner has a large community of "normal" folks, and the Keepers of the Vigil themselves do need people who can help them maintain the Estate. People who are apping in as civilians are welcome to make their starting job pretty much anything, and we'll help you fill in the rest of the blanks.
Beyond having the respective currencies of their nations, Pax Deorum countries have a singular binding currency called Pax Deorum Credits, or Creds, for short. Anyone working for a conspiracy or within Falner is paid in Creds. There are exchange rates, of course, and we'll have a list for some of the more relevant ones in the future.
CAN YOU LOSE YOUR JOB OR QUIT?
Most definitely. That is, however, going to mean losing Resources. That in itself will definitely have in-game consequences for your character, beyond any negative plot hooks that it generates.
...Or it could be a good thing. Who knows?
WHAT IS TECHNOLOGY LIKE IN THE FIFTH WORLD
Hyper-advanced, and informed by several other factors: the supernatural elements that are present within the Fifth World, alien technology from races beyond our planet (particularly from Terra's universe), Relics, and Magience, a technological blend of magic and "traditional" science. The closest analogy that we can think of for reference would be the world of Mass Effect.
CAN YOU REALLY DO ANYTHING OR START ANYWHERE IN-GAME?
Yes and no. Nobody is above the law in the Fifth World, and - given how crazy things have been over the past sixty years - most folks can and will go down hard on people who do crazy or flat-out heinous acts. The rules of IC actions = in-game consequences apply in Waking the Dead: Welcome to the New Age as they apply in any DWRP.
As for starting anywhere... you can have a character who doesn't actually have any reason or plot hook that places them in the Falner Estate, but we DO require that you find your way to Falner eventually. All of the action in-game, barring major events and missions, happens there.
On that note, Waking the Dead is incredibly friendly to all sorts of shenanigans. That includes sex and violence. If such things happen within your threads or logs, you will be required, as players, to place the proper warnings.
WHO IS RUNNING THIS SHOW?
As described on this page, Waking the Dead is a blog-based roleplaying game based off of a mixed White Wolf and New World of Darkness tabletop campaign. It is set in 2066, six years after two really big historical events: a major war between humans and supernaturals, and the resurgence of a terrible threat to the entirety of the Fifth World.
Our log community is
DO YOU HAVE TO HAVE PLAYED WHITE WOLF GAMES OR KNOW ABOUT WAKING THE DEAD TO JOIN THIS GAME?
Not at all. While it helps to have some experience with tabletop roleplaying, having the knowledge is, in no way, necessary to participating in this game. This site will have some information on pertinent game mechanics, and reference links for further reading. We're also going to have a Dropbox full of files for download in case you prefer to have things more readily available offline.
On that note, it's not even necessary to know how to roleplay online. The mod, her mini-mods, and many of the people who have been initially invited to participated are very familiar with the format, and more than happy to show you the ropes!
As for knowing about Waking the Dead, it's enough that you read the information that we've made available on the universe and its history in order to make an effective original character for this setting. Please keep yourselves updated with the info!
YOU GUYS REALLY DON'T HAVE AN ACTIVITY CHECK?
Nope. The pace of Waking the Dead: Welcome to the New Age will be structured to be friendly to people of all levels of Busy (or Not Busy At All). Furthermore, given the fact that Welcome to the New Age is purely OC-based, there is no such thing as character squatting.
Granted, please remember that the mod team does expect you to make an official hiatus announcement, or inform us through any of our channels online. This is more for the reference of other players than it is for anything else, of course.
HOW MANY CHARACTERS CAN I PLAY IN WAKING THE DEAD?
As many as you like, for the moment! This might change in the future, though.
CAN I MAKE OCS BASED FROM FANDOMS?
No. On that note, the mods will be critical of original characters that feel like rip-offs of known characters in anime, manga, comics, video and computer games, movies, television shows, books, and the like.
TERRA IS A THING, THOUGH. CAN I APP ALTERNATE UNIVERSE VERSIONS OF DC CHARACTERS?
No. All DC characters are counted as NPCs.
CAN I USE MY OCS FROM WHITE WOLF CAMPAIGNS AND OTHER TABLETOP CAMPAIGNS THAT I AM IN/HAVE BEEN IN?
Of course, but they'll have to be tailored to suit the setting of Welcome to the New Age.
HOW DO DROPS WORK?
Once you've made the OOC arrangements for the drop with us, you'll have to come up with an IC reason for your character's absence from Falner. This could be anything from character death to quitting your job or... well, really, it can be anything, as long as it's plausible given the setting of the game.
CAN I DROP FOR A WHILE AND PICK MY CHARACTER UP AGAIN SOMETIME IN THE FUTURE?
Most definitely. You'll just have to work out a plausible IC reason for your long absence with us.
That said, other players are not allowed to pick up the characters of other players. That is... kind of weird.
HOW DO YOU EARN EXPERIENCE POINTS IN-GAME?
An explanation of how experience points are earned in-game can be found here, in its pertinent sections on our Systems & Game Mechanics Guide.
HOW WILL TIME BREAK DOWN IN AN IC:OOC RATIO?
One day in-game = seven days out of game. Normally we'd be fine with just leaving the breakdown at 1 IC day = 1 OOC day, but the passage of time is important to note down given the fact that there will be in-game events.
Day change happens at 3 AM PST/5 PM PHT, every Saturday. They will be announced on
SOUNDS GOOD. I WANT IN.
That’s the catch: Waking the Dead is currently referral-based. Candidates for joining the game must be approved by Kae herself, and one of the game's current players or mini-mods.
At this moment, there are no plans to open this game to the general public. If and when this does happen, however, applications are going to be processed by Kae and her mini-moderators.
I'M ONE OF DEM CHOSEN ONES. WHAT DO?
Read through everything. Once that is done, go through the steps that will be outlined on our page specifically devoted to the Application Process.
I'M INTERESTED BUT NOT ENTIRELY SURE WHAT I WANT TO DO/I'D LIKE TO VOICE TEST. IS THAT OKAY?
Absolutely. We have a running Test Drive meme.
CAN I ACTUALLY "APPLY" TO PLAY AN NPC FROM WAKING THE DEAD?
Yep. Contact Pam with her proposal and see what she has to say about it. Your interest, however, is not, in any way, an automatic assurance that it will happen.
I HAVE READ THROUGH EVERYTHING AND I STILL HAVE QUESTIONS!
Feel free to post your questions to this page - Pam and the rest prefer this approach rather than private messaging, as it allows future players to check and see if their own questions have already been answered in the past. Make sure to check our Rules page just in case: your queries might have been tackled there already.
All comments are screened. We'll get back to you as soon as we can!