Sigil: City of Doors

Hey there, good folk. I'm a yet another avid Planescape fan. I've only recently found out about this place and I thought I'd introduce myself as well as ask for some guidance on where to start and how to best integrate myself into the community.

So far I've spent some time roaming around and getting acquainted with how stuff works, but I've yet to begin RP-ing. I'm not sure who to contact for joining in on events and such, and I'm finding it a tad tricky to get in on the RP among established groups. I thought I'd ask if someone were to perhaps be my guide and/or point me in the right direction.

I've checked out the beginners' guide and the wiki, but I'm still feeling slightly overwhelmed.

Also, how does one go back to the OOC area?

Thanks in advance! I'm sure I'm in for a great experience.

Welcome to SCoD!

Currently only way to get back to the OOC Room is by waiting for server reset or with the help of a DM or EM. In the latter case, patience is advised since they actually may have other things to do too.

Welcome to the server! Getting in with the standing groups isn't too bad. For some, it's just a matter of sparking up conversations in the bazaar. For others, well, I won't go into how you get in good with certain people in polite company. Let's just say the options are plentiful. (No spoilers ;)
And most here are really tell friendly, so don't be afraid to shoot someone a question in game :D

Hello! I am going to throw out some thoughts that I think may or may not be helpful for a new player.

Possibly Helpful Thoughts

• Character Background
  Your character can be from any setting that is compatible with the server. This is currently being discussed in this thread.
  However, partly because of it being the most popular setting and also because it's the base setting for the game a lot of people play characters from the Forgotten Realms... and there's also just a lot of characters from primes in general. You are of course more than welcome to join them, but if you're like me and you want to be the exception I recommend playing a Planar or a Sigil native.
• Joining the Cool Kids Groups
  Like Neethanial said, this can sometimes be just as easy as striking up a conversation. But really, any active effort to want to do things with other people usually helps. You know, as long as you're not playing a Death Knight and wanting to be BFF's with a Nymph.
  Another good force for joining groups is to... well, join groups. The 15 factions specifically, but there's also some other player-driven groups like the Hiromo's that are pretty open and helpful. I had a very wonderful and long session of RP with Dace Andor of the Mercykillers yesterday and the spark that drove it was that my character happened to be a Mercykiller Namer that looked capable.
  If you'd like to get an idea for Faction Demographics, I recommend taking a look at this poll.
• Getting Dem Professor Plums (That's a Clue reference to Purple)
  So, you've got a new character. You think you've got your build down but now you need some gear. As has been said a hundred times, the Player Merchants are a good source for surprisingly cheap magical items. I recommend aiming for getting as many +4 items as you can and worry about getting +5's when you're close to max level and you're looking to replace gear. There's a lot of custom items that should work for whatever build it is that you decide on going for. (Gear is 40% of a character, after all.)
• Joining Events
  This one is a little tricky, and ultimately it depends on the event in question. Sometimes it's just a matter of being online when a DM shouts about an event being run. DM's and EM's usually will also advertise events on the forums and give some details about what types of characters might be suited for the event (Mander's Undead Jesus Storyline Stuff [sic?] for example). Other times DM's and EM's will actively try to include people who show an interest in investigating certain event-related things on the forums.
  And at the very least, player characters involved in these events are usually pretty interested in having capable and driven people give them a hand. Viann's character Nica Kelter, despite being completely new to the Cold Winds of Fey storyline and also despite the fact that a lot of PC's involved were very distrusting of the Harmonium, became one of the more central figures almost exclusively because of the amount of effort and drive she has put into the character and the plot.
• Getting the LEVEL UP!'s
  This is a topic that is discussed Semi-Frequently. My play-style is to just take things slow and level up to 30 over the course of a few months so that's probably not helpful for you. Instead, I am going to recommend you read this very stellar guide for obtaining your first few levels and throw you a list of areas on the server and how to get to them.

I really hope this helps! Like Neethanial said, if you have any questions please feel free to PM someone. I think most people are more than willing to help out! Until then...

Good luck, and I'll see you in-game!

Don't be afraid to just talk to people. Sure some are stand offish and jerks ICly, but a lot will humor Clueless, which are people from Primes (Faerun etc) who don't know all about planescape. My most recent character got given like 5k gold to help start her out on adventuring, just because she was so clueless.

And was given a bunch of items that are keys to low level areas and told where to go.


Can't promise you'll get all the gifts, but you can make plenty friends.



And yes, feel free to PM me, I play Alenetha and Usha.

My personal guideline for getting into RP with others is to not fit in. If you think your character is already more or less a duplicate of what exists, then you'll compete with the other(s) for the same attention.

Quirks

This is the 'what makes your character interesting and different than others?' part. It's essential, but not alone strong enough to drive a character. Unusual appearance, peculiar mannerism, abnormal physical or mental health, outlandish trinket(s) or unusual and possibly unconscious spontaneous behavior. Any of those can set you apart, I'd pick something which isn't passively represented, such as appearance, but rather something you need to [i]actively[/i] represent via emotes yourself. [/li]

Passion

Try to reflect passion in everything your character does, if your character is a lazy bum that could care less, as a narrator try to represent it passionately. Give them emotion, make them show why others should care about their lack of caring. Roleplaying online is a collection of a ton of tiny sessions of insignificance, try to maintain passion in all the little things as well, not just the large matters. Confidence is very attracting trait also. [/li]

"Destiny"

What is your character destined to do? Get everyone tangled into their web of tricks for personal amusement? Face a grave danger head on? Take over an entire ward of Sigil via political maneuvering? It really doesn't matter what you choose, it can be as unrealistic as you want, because achieving it isn't important. Only thing important in this point is that you have a primary longterm motivation that you can use as a guideline in all decisions of your character. [i]Think[/i] longterm, but don't fear to reveal quickly... you are after all trying to market your character. [/li]

A couple of quick hints from me as well...

1. Start off simple. It can be tempting to go "way out there" and make your first character a dragon or beholder or death knight. But characters like that can also have a hard time finding themselves included. Start off with a more "normal" race to get the hang of the unique mechanics on the server and to meet other players. THEN go out and make that wild character you've always dreamed of playing.

2. Everything doesn't have to be perfect. Of course we all want the best gear like elemental shards, brazen armor, holy swords, or +5 accessories. But those are friggin' expensive, while like Sin said, if you're content to go with something a little softer for now, you're going to have more success, and you'll have the coin and opportunity to buy all those top-tier toys when you're epic and can grind epic areas for rare gems and popular weapons.

3. Vulnerability is not a detriment. Sure, it can be tempting to be the ultimate badass, but present that front all the time and all you're going to get are eyerolls. The ability to solo the Painbringer (one of the toughest bosses in an epic area, if you're new here) might be impressive, but meaningless in the long run if your ultimate badass has no friends and isn't taking part in events.

4. Remember you can always go back. Because we allow rebuilds and releveling, don't be afraid to try something off-the-wall, since you can always go back and change your mind. I know most of us like to map out our builds ahead of time, but don't hesitate to grow organically, both in RP and mechanically.

Oh, additional tip: start early. The longer you procrastinate getting in touch with people, the harder it will get. The absolute worst that will happen when you try to RP with people is that they just ignore you, which ideally won't happen either. :P Especially in the bazaar, PvP is disabled there anyway.

Everyone has made really good suggestions in this thread that I simply have nothing to add to (GO TEAM!) so I will simply offer a heartfelt welcome. If there's anything you get stuck on, have questions or just wanted to get some RP going - I'm tell friendly! Feel free to shoot me a message in game or on the forums and I'll be happy to help you out.

Unfortunately, my main character is out of the city currently (and likely won't be back soon) but she's flexible and for the most part able to RP with everyone and anyone. The joys of playing a human mercenary (Ceremorph's suggestions are A+++ in this regard)! Either way, the bazaar is likely your best bet.

Give me a poke if you get stuck!

Whew! Thanks for the quick (and informative) responses, everyone.

I've read all of it thoroughly, and it's given me a lot of clarity on how things work. And with that, I've gotten some ideas on what to do. Should be enough to get me started.

Thanks a lot, again.