Before you read this starters FAQ for THE TEMPLAR'S GAMBIT, be sure you have read and can agree to the Foundational Principle. There is no need to read any further if you have issues with it - otherwise, please read on.

These are common questions, and Volen has compiled the FAQ below.

For reference, all posts linked to this event will be tagged with [TTG] this stands for The Templar's Gambit (the name of this event).

Q: Is this your first on-line campaign as Director/DM/GM?
A: No, this would be my sixth 'long-running' campaign. My last one ran over a period of close to five years (10 Acts, 100s of Scenes). I've also GMed at CyberCon and won a prizes for GMing. (OK, enough - my arm is sore from patting myself on the back Our Co-Director, Geth is a VERY experienced director/GM/Dm as well.

Q: What kind of role-playing rules do you use?
Q: What rule modifications or clarifications to you have?
A: We use the Modern Exploit for diceless RPs when needed. What few rule modifications or clarifications I will post on the 'rule mods' thread. You won't find much there because this is a VERY "rules light" RP.

Q: What type of characters can I play? or
Q: Can I start with a 11th level (enter class here)?
A: You can create any character/race/profession available in the Secret World. Since you can be anything you can imagine (within certain limits) - be whatever you want to be. There is a chance that the current team will reject your character concept - as opposed to 'me' rejecting it. Just because your character shows up on the doorsteps of the team, doesn't mean he'll be welcomed as a member or placed on a mission team.

Q: What is the 'setting?'
A: Our campaign is set somewhere in the Secret World universe... Who knows where it will lead - even I don't know really until you and your teammates start interacting with it. Anything can happen - and often does.

Q: How much of a character background do I HAVE to have before I can turn in a character?
Q: I have 50 pages of background information on my new character, would you like it as a doc or PDF?
A: All we need is a nice paragraph or two background for your starting character's background. Each time you advance your character to a new "act" you are expected to add more details to the background or add a post to your story about what has happened so far from their perspective. It has been my experience that it takes some time to get to know your new character's past, character strengths and flaws, etc. Perhaps this story will help you get to know your character even better!

Q: I'd like to play a Minder-reader, FX adept, Vampire, werewolf, mindwalker, Sandman, etc.
What do you think?
A: Well, I suppose anything is possible but there should be a fantastic character background to explain it. Frankly, its best to start out with the basics and work it up from there. We won't be using any 'Supers' FX (ever), and rarely will approve FX in general. If FX are allowed on those rare occasions, it is very likely that the character will start with a power pool of 0 points, and be awarded FX power points for role play which supports "why" the character has those skills in the first place. We can cover whatever abilities you have in mind within the ruleset (which you won't see much of), but will be adding these slowly from within the story as we go.

Q: I'd like to play a 'spy' for the bad guys. Is that OK?
Q: I'd like to be an evil [species name]. Is that OK?
A: Nope, not a chance. Although your cast member's character traits are yours to decide (happy, sad, dark and moody... whatever), these are the 'good guys.' Bottom line, if you what to play for the 'dark side,' you better find another team - you won't be too happy here.

Q: What about starting funds and equipment?
A: You have whatever your character has in the game. You could have additional things depending on how you write your chronicle entry. I reserve the option to drop (and in some cases add) gear at anytime.
There are special benefits from getting materials from Templar Hall. Remember, if you are not sure about an item, just ask.

Q: I don't have a rule book, can I still play with you folks?
Q: I don't have the [insert book title here], can I still play with you folks?
A: Yes. Our goal is that you'll never need to see the rules. Just think of them as the engine under the hood. As long as you are happy with the way it is running, there is no need to look at them. If you ever have a question about a Director's (GM/DM) call, feel free to ask in the OOC thread for the game.

Q: Can I miss a mission (chapter)?
Q: Something came up and I missed the mission. Can I still play next time (in the next act/chapter)?
Q. I'm going to be out of town for several weeks and won't be able to post. Can I return and still play?
A: Of course you can. But... just because you didn't drive across town to join us, doesn't mean you shouldn't afford us the common courtesy to let us know that you aren't going to be around. Just let me know in advance if you will not not be able to post. Everyone messes up and just 'spaces' our for a few days - even a week, your character may find life in our part of the universe very dangerous if you stay 'out' for too long.
BE SURE to post in the vacation request room if you are not going to be able to post in the game for a period of over two weeks. If you are going to miss a posting period (1 week), just post something in the OOC thread for the game.

Q: What do you think about character death?
Q: My high level character just died, and I'm a bit upset. Is that 'fair?'
A: I believe that the gaming experience is richer when your character could experience death (in the gaming sense of course). I expect that cast members will die in advancement of the storyline, and this only adds to the overall richness of the experience. If you have a character that dies, you can bring them back in as soon as the storyline allows. Cast members that come back from "bees" will be weaker than they were before - from a game perspective. So be careful!!

Q: How do experience points (XPs) work?
Q: Jimbo's character got more XPs then I did! How is that fair?
A: I usually try and award experience points after each "Act."

For "showing up" for an entire act and supporting the storyline advance in some way, I would give +0.5 level XPs.
For "showing up and showing out" for an entire act by aiding in the advancement of the storyline in a major way, I would give +1 level XPs. This is what you can expect for excellent role-playing.
For "showing up and superior play" for an entire act by advancing the storyline of the campaign in a major way, I would give +1.5 level XPs. This will happen rarely when a character has taken actions or made discoveries that will effect the storyline positively for many sessions to come.
I provide bonus XPs for posting in the chronicle from your character's storyline. There are additional ways to become more powerful in the Event. For example, writing the synopsis (Templar Report) when needed is usually +0.2 level XPs. If you have ideas for enhancing THE EVENT or would like to help in some way, please email me or Co-Director with your idea.

As for 'fairness,' I can't guarantee that this system is 100%. If you're in doubt just remember... if you want to make an impression, leave a good one!

Q: What software/hardware will I need to play on-line with your group?
A: We will be playing via the 9-Swords RP forums and on-line at special times.

Q: Are there any on-line gaming conventions I should know before the first game time?
A: I will teach you these as we go our first time out. Remember that others will be there to help you too. There is a separate post for these. See "Player's Coffee Room" and the "tips" threads.

Q: What is a "lurker" and should I be offended if I am called one?
A: A lurker is a quality gamer who for some reason isn't able to join as a full Cast Member but is interested in following the game. Lurkers get first dibs at open seats as they become available as we only keep 6 to 10 cast members at any one time.

Q: Do you allow 100% CM (Cast Member) freedom?
Q: Can I kill that obnoxious cast member?
A: See the "Foundational Principle" again. The short answer is, no. Players will not be allowed to kill other cast members. This does not mean that an action taken by a Cast Member will never kill another Cast Member... it just means that it won't be allowed to happen on purpose. If there is a problem Cast Member and normal role-playing won't take care of the issues, the team can sensor that CM, effectively removing him from play. The player owning the CM can then create a new character as if the CM had "died" (see character death above). By the way... this is taken care of "in character" which is the way all actions are taken once the game starts or the director calls a 'pause' in the game.

Q: Can action take place between acts/missions?
A: There is extreme value in "hall talk" which isn't always allowed for during the premium time we have during a mission. Because I we don't want to loose the "low-key" but important interactions, I have created a forum (message center and 'interlude' acts/chapters) you can use to have conversations that could take place "in between" our missions. Past teams have used to list to discuss plans for team improvements, assignments, and analysis of their situation to plan their next move as a team. "Hallway talk" can take place in the "Templar Hall Message Board" Thread.

Just remember to use "OOC" ((for "out of character")) in the subject if you are going to post a message to the message board if it is "you" and not your character - that should be done sparingling. Most OOC talk should go in the OOC thread.

Q: I've read the starters FAQ and I'm interested in playing a full cast member in your THE EVENT. How do I get started?
A: The good news is that you have done the hard part by reading this FAQ!! Now all you need to do is follow the directions for starting characters.

The "Post" in the Play by Post Format

You'd be surprised how many folks besides our 'team' will read our games!

This means you write your posts as if you are writing a novel, first or third person, limited (your character's) perspective. In other words, we want the game threads to read MOSTLY like a book. You can write about what your feeling, do flashbacks (esp. nice if you missed an opportunity to post before someone else moved the story along), explore possibilities, etc. but all in our "novel" format.

Out of character (OOC) comments should be clearly marked using the [fieldset tag] or double brackets of some kind (( )) {{ }} [[ ]] BUT USED minimally in the game thread. Good examples of these are SHORT explanations of game mechanics related to the current post, and so on. ALL OTHER OOC comments should go in the players coffee room (the OOC room). I will usually try to clean up the current thread as I go if you miss some of these, this includes marking out unrelated OOC comments.

Other nice, but not required conventions for postings are: BOLD for direct character quotes, italics for ‘thoughts’, and the tilde (~) as brackets for telepathic thoughts.

Postings like,
‘My character picks up his gun and shoots the Vampire’ are better written like this:

Brutus sees the Vampire swoop down from the high ledge, curved katana in hand. Reflexes honed from thousands of practice sessions kicked into gear, as his pistol seemingly appears in his hand having been drawn from its holster. He aims and fires between its pair of red eyes.

PLEASE notice, your character's name is used in all the posts. There is not problem using the first-person pronouns ("I" for example, but use your character's name first - see the example above).

[[Any explanation of needed for this post are included here in OOC]]

I hope this helps! Enjoy, Volen