Being that there are several chats on the proverbial market that are open to certain ways of play style, Ahadi: East Africa prefers a unified front in order to control the flow of roleplaying. This causes less traffic in the In Character rooms and cuts down on confusion. Below you will find a list of acceptable and unacceptable ways of roleplaying on the chat, please take these into consideration as you begin your journey in Ahadi: East Africa.

Room Descriptions

When you come into an In Character room on Ahadi: East Africa, it is preferred that you follow the Room Descriptions. If you’re walking into a scene involving few to several players on the African Plains, it is not appropriate to state that you are walking into a bar to get a drink. Also, some of our areas cover vast amounts of space. Don't assume that you can interact with other players immediately upon room entry. Please refer to the information that is provided for you in order to not intercept the flow of the game or cause confusion.

Posting

There are two acceptable ways of posting in chat rooms that do not disrupt the flow of roleplaying, we prefer those two. For example:

Acceptable:

1. Fumbo walks into the room quietly, bowing his head and tucking his tail as he greets Ankhen with proper submission, “Good evening, Bows To The Night-Rhya.”
2. *Fumbo walks into the room quietly, bowing his head and tucking his tail as he greets Ankhen with proper submission* Good evening, Bows To The Night-Rhya.

Not Acceptable:

1. Excessive use of characters such as: ~~*~~ Fumbo walks into the room quietly, bowing his head and tucking his tail as he greets Ankhen with proper submission~~*~~
2. Capslock. If you have to use emphasis, please do so in these two manners. Capslock is not only alarming, it also breaks proverbial online etiquette and leads one to presume someone is yelling. Examples:

• “/Yes/, I’m telling you everything I saw. There was nothing /left/ at the site.”
• “I did –not- break the Karoush. I –swear- it on my life!”

First Person vs. Third Person

It is preferred that all players post their actions in third person. For example:

Acceptable: Fumbo walks along the banks of the wallow, carefully keeping an eye on the water as he stops to take a drink. When he sees the clutch approaching the water’s edge he raises his head, “Good Afternoon, Drinks Rain.”

Not Acceptable: I walk along the banks of the wallow, thinking to myself that something might be in the water. When I see the clutch coming forward, I say Good Afternoon, Drinks Rain.

As you can see, it is much easier to decipher what is happening in this scenario, there is no confusion as to who is walking along the banks. Additionally, we as players and storytellers are not and do not need to be privy to your private thoughts. If your body language or facial expression is threatening, emphatic, melancholy, etc. in nature please state as much through expressing those things, rather than your thoughts.

Complete Sentences

We prefer that all characters make posts in complete sentences. For example:

Acceptable: Ankhen’s brows raise quickly, a true testament to his surprise as he opens the door to find his pack mate on the other side, “Jambo, Fumbo!”

Not Acceptable: opens the door, “Hi!”

Accents

Though we understand that it is compelling and challenging to roleplay a character who has an accent, it can often times be confusing to players who don’t catch the gist of what you’re saying. Asking for clarification and interrupting the flow of roleplaying is not conducive to the type of roleplaying we prefer to have on the chat. If you prefer to roleplay a character with an accent, thick or not, please state so when you enter a room rather than writing it out.

Acceptable:: Jamaal speaks with a thick, husky accent that is a testament to his native roots in South Africa, “Jambo, Mama. How are you this afternoon? Whatever happened to that zebra we saw at the bridge?”

Not Acceptable: “Jambo, Mama. How ah you thus aftahnoon? Whatevah happen’ to tha’ zehbrah we’s saw at tha’ bridge?”

Final Thoughts

1. Avoid Clichés
2. Use the communication tools you have to maintain IC interactions. Use e-mail, the forums calendar, and instant messaging to schedule events, or utilize the forums to role-play when you can't get together in time for a scene.
   1. The forums also have private messaging capabilities.
3. If you are doing disruptive or major things to the environment, to storylines, or to other player's property, you must get an admin involved. This ensures that the character has the means, and allows us the ability to moderate the action and the consequences throughout the site.
4. Characters die, things get broken, and plans get waylaid. We do not encourage combat or character death, but please be aware that Excrement Occurs. Keep in mind, this is set in the World of Darkness, not everything goes the way we want it to in real life, even less will in this setting.
5. Role-play before you roll dice.
   1. Use descriptions and actions to describe your character's traits actions. This makes play more memorable.
   2. When you are going to roll the dice, make an OOC post declaring it so that attention can be brought to the dice roller page.
   3. For the average fight in which no characters are meant to die, simply decide who would have a better chance of winning and free form the fight without resorting to dice. This saves SO MUCH TIME.
6. Blatant or excessive use of powers can lead to those powers being ignored by other players. You should RP to learn things that could be found out through Mnesis, or to accomplish the easier facets of other powers. Also, just because an ability could tell you something, doesn't mean your character has the experience to know that.
7. Be aware of the location and ramifications of a room. Some rooms require finding IC. This includes the areas of Ushirikiano Kisiwa, the secret areas of the Island, and the Caerns and Places of Power outside of Ushirikiano Kisiwa. These are not places you will just stumble upon.
8. We use Pacific Time on site, and the real world weather and moon phase. Regardless of these generalities, the first player in a room may claim the time of day in their tag to ease confusion or to set a scene.