Your Guide to Path of the Vampire

[Amaranthia]

Rules and Guidelines

[1] Be nice to each other OOC.
This means you will be moderated for clear insults, depending on the severity. This rule also means no serious racism, sexism, excessive trolling, or telling somebody that they are “acting like a baby”. Simply, try to be nice when not roleplaying.
Roleplayers: please do not comment in-character about people's spelling or grammar as these are often OOC mistakes. Not everyone speaks English as their first language, and some people suffer from real-life learning disabilities.

[2] Don't Get Pornographic
This means no posting pornographic images, videos or erotica.

[3] (Roleplayers) Try to follow the mythos described in the wiki
We've created a logical fictional universe, and if you ignore these things you are messing up the story and the world for everyone else. Try to read some of the main pages on the wiki before roleplaying, but if you forget something, a moderator will let you know, so don't worry. The basics of the mythos are covered here, so try to read at least that before posting any roleplay.

[4] (Roleplayers) No god-modding or power playing.
This means a) you cannot control another person's character, ONLY your own, and b) you cannot roleplay your character as more powerful than they actually, realistically are. Don't have telepathy in the game? Then don't roleplay using it. It's as simple as that.

[5] (Roleplayers) No crossing or mixing between "in character" and "out of character".
If you are a roleplayer, what happens IC (in character) should stay IC, and should not bleed into how you treat other people OOC (out of character). The same goes in reverse; you should never take OOC information and insert it into the brain of your character, because only you know this information, not your character.
If you are a roleplayer, you are strongly advised NOT to attack people in game who you have a problem with OOC. If the person who has been attacked feels like there are OOC issues between you two, they can report the incident to the moderators, who will then inform you of the report. No action will be taken at that time, unless the attack continue after that point, and evidence is found to suggest that the OOC issues between both roleplayers outweighs the IC reasoning.

[6] (Roleplayers) No using 2 of your own characters to back each other up in roleplay.
This rule covers both Crownet and descriptive style roleplaying. Simply, try to avoid having your characters either verbally or physically back one another up on a thread, even if it fits with their personalities. It's generally considered very bad form to do so. The only exception to this would be where the thread pertains to a chapter update, and all characters are welcome to give opinions.

[7] (Roleplayers) No spamming roleplay posts purely to get WPP.
Don't post gibberish in your roleplay, or we'll assume you're just doing it to earn EXP. If you're going to quote somebody use the ["quote"] tags provided. You aren't supposed to be earning RPP from OTHER people's writing, just your own. Live roleplay transcripts can still be posted, but you should only post the transcripts with permission from all other people involved. If possible, try to give the other people involved in the live RP a chance to post a proportionate amount of the log so that they get an equal share of the RPP rewards.

-------------------------------------------


Please note, the language censor is turned off by default, but you can switch it on if you prefer, by going to your user control panel area (found right at the top of any page).

Bannings are at the discretion of the admins. We reserve the right to remove any member from this forum for any reason we deem necessary. Appeals are permitted.

If you have any questions, or require a clarification on the rules please contact an Administrator or Moderator.

As of this time they are:

Developer: Mooncalf
Admins: Mooncalf
Role Play Moderator:Lancaster
Moderators: Jonah, Anemoi, Every, Dominique
New Player Guide:
Chat Mods: Pi, Velia

If you are interested in becoming a moderator please contact the Admins.

Graphic Sizes

• Forum
  
  Avatars for the forum should be no larger than 100kb and 120 pixels wide x 300 pixels tall.
  Banners for the forum should be no larger than 200kb 500 pixels wide x 200 pixels tall.
• Grid Character Sheets
  
  Grid CS Avatar (displays on character sheet, 150 wide by 500 high)
  Grid CS Banner (displays on character sheet, roughly 746 wide by 150 high)
• Banners and Avatars are considered OOC, and not visible on the IC forums including CrowNet.

Regarding CrowNet
All posts are considered fully IC information. If you do not want other characters to know the thoughts of your character, then do not post them on CrowNet. The actions posted there are considered as if they were typed out by the character and posted for other characters to read.

For example:

As I see it, you are quite incorrect.

By just posting what she would have replied, Amara does not post her thoughts.

Amaranthia glanced down at the post, wrinkling her nose and wondering the cause of such drivel. It would be far too amusing when she blew them up in the mall. "As I see it, you are quite incorrect."

By posting her actions and thoughts, she is broadcasting them to the rest of the characters reading CrowNet, unintentionally revealing her secret plan for mass destruction.

What is PG-13?

PG-13:"Parents Strongly Cautioned. Some Material May Be Inappropriate For Children Under 13."

PG-13 is thus a sterner warning to determine the attendance in particular of their younger children. A PG-13 film is one which, in the view of the Rating Board, leaps beyond the boundaries of the PG rating in theme, violence, nudity, sensuality, language, or other contents, but does not quite fit within the restricted R category.

• Any drug use content will initially require at least a PG-13 rating.
• If nudity is sexually oriented, the film will generally not be found in the PG-13 category.
• If violence is too rough or persistent, the film goes into the R (restricted) rating.
• A film's single use of one of the harsher sexually-derived words, though only as an expletive requires a PG-13 rating.
• More than one such expletive must lead the Rating Board to issue a film an R rating, as must even one of these words used in a sexual context.

PG:"Parental Guidance Suggested. Some Material May Not Be Suitable For Children."

• The theme of a PG-rated film may itself call for parental guidance.
• There may be some profanity in these films.
• There may be some violence or brief nudity. But these elements are not deemed so intense as to require that parents be strongly cautioned beyond the suggestion of parental guidance.
• There is no drug use content in a PG-rated film.

[Amaranthia]

Roleplay Guidelines

It is possible to write roleplay on your own, however it tends to be generally a social interaction. You will find yourself most likely interacting with others, in many different ways. It is because of this that a few guidelines and social guidelines be respected with regards to role playing.

Character Creation

All characters created after the Pre-beta testing era of Path of the Vampire (referred to by PotV or PV from now on) are turned either in the future (as with predetermined storylines or human characters) or on the spot, after the rising of the First Generation of vampires after the holocaust of the vampire race in 1813. Please see the Wiki for further information on the Vampire Holocaust in PotV.

While it may be tempting to make your character all powerful, it is strongly cautioned that you rethink this idea. Your character will be freshly turned, and need to work up to power. Often, the most fun in roleplaying is when you have mutually agreed on a party winning or losing in an interaction, and writing out the story with another role player.

Another general no-no in role playing is the creation of a character identical to yourself. By creating a character based on yourself you open yourself up to an emotional attachment that often leads to hurt feelings when your character does not win, or is insulted by another character. Interactions on an In Character (IC) level should never be taken as a personal insult to yourself the player, also known as OOC interaction.

Playing with Others

When writing with other players there are a few chief rules of coduct.


1. Never control the actions of another character without the express consent of the other player.
   
2. Be willing to not always be the winner.
3. Don't assume. This includes feelings, emotions, reactions, and how another character is effected by an action.

Characters that are played by another player, and have an in-grid account attached to them are considered PC, or Player Characters. Characters not on the grid are considered NPCs, or Non-played Characters. A player may have certain NPCs that you will need to respect and not godmod without permission in addition to their player characters. NPCs typically fill a role such as a bartender, or plot-centered characters.

IC information vs OOC information

IC or In Character knowledge is vastly different from knowledge that you have gained OOC (Out of Character as in you the player). OOC information should never be taken IC and acted upon in Role Play unless directed by agreement of all involved parties. This allows those writing to write their character with greater freedom and confidence, which makes for better roleplay overall.

Please keep in mind, the owner of the thread is considered the master over that thread. This means that what they say goes. If they ask you to change an action done by your character, or to keep your character out of an interaction, it is expected that you will comply with the request.

• Character Sheets in the game are considered to be OOC information, except the general impression of stats for telepaths.
• Bio sections of CS are ALWAYS considered OOC information.
  
  • Levels, EXP, PXP are all OOC terms.
  • Stats are also OOC.
• Wiki Articles are OOC information.
• Banners, avatars and other graphics of this nature are OOC information.
• RP Path Powers
  
  • It is encouraged to try to cast a path power in the game to determine whether you are successful in doing so in RP.

Mentors

The people listed below are those who have volunteered to act as mentors to those who wish extra guidance on roleplaying. For questions or complaints regarding role play issues, contact Wolfgang or Elliot DArtois.


Amaranthia
Elliot dArtois

[Amaranthia]

A warning before you continue reading: becoming a good hacker is costly, it is (or will be) dangerous, and it takes some levelling up of the hacking skill to be of any use. It also takes a tiny bit of intelligence, so don't try it unless you understand the following rough guide...


Hacking Programs
To be a good hacker in Harper Rock requires more than just hacking skill, you also need to buy yourself some scripts or programs. These can (at the moment) be bought in normal black market vamp shops (the green ones), and will automatically be taken with you when you enter a system. The available progs are:

Transfer *
Used to transfer files out of a network, to sell later for cash.
Usage: run PROGRAM NAME(FILE NAME)
Example: run Transfer V1(2845.exe)

Evaluate *
Used to estimate the value of a file you find, before downloading.
Usage: run PROGRAM NAME(FILE NAME)
Example: run Evaluate V1(cctv92)

Mask *
Used to fool authentication security into thinking you are an authorized user.
Usage: run PROGRAM NAME(authentication)
Example: run Mask V4(authentication)

Stealth *
Used to slip past sentinel security programs, who guard node entry and exit.
Usage: run PROGRAM NAME(sentinel)
Example: run Stealth V1(sentinel)

Delete
Brute force program which lets you attempt to sabotage a security application.
If delete succeeds it has a chance of lowering the security level of a network, but if it fails it will raise the alert level by 2 points instead of 1. It also has less chance of success than the other hacking tools.
Usage: run PROGRAM NAME(TARGET)
Example: run Delete V4(tracer)

Armor
Used to deflect destabilisation attempts by warrior security programs.
Usage: run PROGRAM NAME(warrior)
Example: run Armor V1(warrior)

Silence
Stops a tracer security program from triangulating your position, and getting you fined, attacked, or imprisoned.
Usage: run PROGRAM NAME(tracer)
Example: run Silence V6(tracer)

Decrypt
Decrypt an encrypted file (often worth more), making them easier to download.
Usage: run PROGRAM NAME(FILE NAME)
Example: run Decrypt V2(passwords5)

Virus
Used to shut down a network, or a part of a network, found either in switches or in administration nodes.
Please note: this is only useful for mission hacks, which are coming soon.
Usage: TBD
Example: TBD

Mapper
Shows you a map of surrounding systems at the cost of 50% of your moves.

Commander
Turns the input field into a drop down menu displaying all possible commands. Different versions of the program have different costs (V1 costs half your hacking moves, whereas V4 costs nothing)
Usage: Constantly active
Example: -

*Progs marked with an asterisk are recommended for a hacker's starter kit. If you don't have money for all 4 of them, substitute Stealth and Mask for Delete, and don't worry about Evaluate.



Command Line
The command line is your gateway into other people's computers. It can be used to do many things. Here is a list of the current commands available to use:

dsp nodes_connecting
This command will display the list of surrounding nodes or computers in the network (think of them as grid squares).
There are no current variations of this command.

check(security)
This will tell you the strength level of the security application present at the current location.
There are no current variations of this command.

check(files)
This command will list you the files at your current location (only applies if you are in a file node).
There are no current variations of this command.

connect (X)
This allows you to connect to one of the neighbouring nodes.
Usage: connect (43_12_files)

run X(Y)
Uses one of your currently owned programs on the system.
Usage: run Silence V6(tracer)

More to be added later.



Tips
* The higher intelligence you have, the more time you will get in the hacked network. This is reflected by the "actions" you have remaining when you enter the system. If your actions reach 0, you are locked out of the network.

* Once you download a file from a hacked system, you have completed a successful hack for the day, and will not be able to hack again that same day (logic ignored, for gameplay purposes), so take the actions you have remaining and try to grab as many more files as you can before you are locked out. Files can be worth anything between $0 and $hundreds depending on luck, system security, and how good a hacker you are.

* You gain a experience points every time you complete a successful hack.

* Try to get your commands right! A wrong command will cause you to lose an action point.

* Don't go back to the grid while you are in the middle of a hack. This will end your current session.

* The further into a system you are able to progress, the more valuable the files become, but the tougher the security gets!

* Make little maps for yourself on paper as you wander through some of the larger systems. You might have to go back on yourself and wont always remember which node you came from.

Example:
connect (10_9_security)
run Transfer V1(filename)

An additional source of information on Hacking can be found on the wiki Here.

[Amaranthia]

Credit goes to Dex for the following walkthrough (updated by Phoenix)

Hacking is a great way to earn some Mind EXP, and possibly some cash too if things work out. However your Intelligence will limit your actions before a system locks you out. The higher your Intelligence stat, the more actions you get. There are two types of hacks: training hacks and regular hacks. Regular hacking costs 2 energy per attempt, but requires 4 energy for a successful hack, which can only be completed once daily for 65 EXP. Training hacks are only limited by your available energy and give 10 EXP so long as you download a single file. Starting out, hacking will take a while to do successfully. There are a couple assumptions you can make and patterns you can watch for to reduce your time hacking and save on moves.

When you start, you will always start at a node called 10_10_gateway. This node will either be guarded by a sentinel program or an authentication program. You will need to deal with this program before you can proceed. Assuming no failures, that will cost you 1 action.

From that node, all systems have a 10_9_security node attached. You can save yourself an action by just assuming the security node is there and connecting. The connection will cost you an action, bringing the total to 2.

10_9_security will be guarded by something. If it's another sentinel or authentication, you'll need at least one action to get past it. If you're lucky, though, it will be a tracer program or a warrior program. Both of these can be safely ignored as long as the system's alert level is still green. 10_9_security connects to a file node. In my experience it will either be 10_8_files or 9_9_files, with 10_8_files being more likely. If you have ignorable security and skip looking around to just assume the next connection, you can move to 10_8_files straight away, bringing your spent actions to a total of 3.

File nodes do not have security, however they can have tracer programs, which will alert the authorities to the illegal activities taking place. If you don't mind a cop showing up at your doorstep, you can ignore it. You'll need to spend an action on the check(files) command (total: 4), because you can't do much without knowing the actual names of the files present. When the list comes up, write them down. This list will disappear when you take your next action.

The quickest way to grab something, if you're really low on actions (or if you hit a snag earlier), is to just do it. Pick a file and Transfer it out (total actions: 5). When I first started with the hacking skill, 5 actions was my magic number, so this was literally all I could do. There seems to be a certain amount of randomness to which files are worth more than $20, so use your best judgment.

If you have the cash to buy specialized programs, it's worth the extra dough. A Stealth program for sentinels, a Mask program for authentication...these have a better chance of getting you through fast than Delete's brute force approach. You can get started with an investment of as little as $1000, though, buying only Transfer V1 and Delete V1; just don't expect things to be easy.

If you have enough actions to play with, you can continue exploring the system. More on system layouts can be found HERE.

Happy Hacking!

[Amaranthia]

Leveling Guide

Every character, whether human or vampire, starts at level 1, their stats determined by their path (if vampire) or set at the human norm (if human), and all their skills set at 1.

When you gain a level, the percentage listed next to EXP on the main grid screen will be replaced with a red “LEVEL UP!” link. Following this link will take you to the level-up page, which displays the stats and skills, allowing you to select one of each.

• Tips on getting the maximum gain from the tutorial.
• Doing a FB share once a week will get one of your character 1 karma and 400 exp.
• The TopSites board. Voting for Path once a day on all will get you another .01 Karma and another 400 exp
• Tips for Gaining EXP
• New Player EXP Tips
• If you have finished the tutorial hub, you should go to the QZ to start hunting zombies. There's a fade portal to it in the Metronome Club which is in Wickbridge right by the train. Use the map link. (See bottom of post for another shortcut)
  
  Metro is at 19, 23. Once inside the club, go to 7,9. There is a fade portal there that goes to inside a building in the QZ. (Quarantine Zone) The best hunting is in a building south of the one you arrive in, so exit it and go to 30,23 in the QZ, it's only a few moves. In that building called the Corvidae Flats, you can hang out indefinitely. It has everything you will need in the lobby.
  
  Hunt zombies until you're sick of it and/or until you can kill the feral vampire that is in there.

Special Thanks to Alexandrea for the EXP Tips and Links!

[Amaranthia]

Karma

Karma is purchased through the Karma link on the grid. It can be used to purchase lairs, apartments, crypts, and other items. Some of these items can also be purchased with grid cash.


Hacked Webphone Buy with 10 karma
Desktop Computer Buy with 5 karma
Power Orb (10 PXP) Buy with 10 karma
Debit Card Buy with 5 karma
Apartments Buy with 30 Karma
Crypts Buy with 30 Karma
Lairs PRICE


Buy 5 Karma for $4.99
Buy 10 Karma for $9.49
Buy 30 Karma for $27.49
Buy 50 Karma for $45.49
Buy 100 Karma for $89.95

[Cassandra]

Traversing the Path Wheel

As your character progresses in their powers, eventually they're going to attain all the ones on their starting Path that you'll want them to have, and need to grow beyond this. Fortunately, there's three directions in which you can do this from each starting Path - one Bridge to either side, and the Mastery Path. In this way, with enough time and effort, you could potentially have all the powers in the game!

You can view all the Paths and their Powers by clicking on their name below: (Note: You must be logged into the game grid, and you cannot purchase powers without first meeting the prerequisites in the rest of this post.)

Shadows - Summoner - Mystic - Seeker - Telepath - Illusionist - Allurist - Shifter - Killer - Immortal - Necromancer - Fadewalker

To access a new Path, a few things must happen:

- The Path must be adjacent to a Path you already have access to. For instance, you can't access Telepath from Mystic - you need to have access to Seeker (the Bridge between the two) first.

- To access a Bridge, you must have gotten all the powers on that side of the Base Path first.
- To access a new Base Path, you must have gotten all the powers on the Bridge leading to it.
- To access a Mastery Path, you must have gotten ALL the powers of that Base Path.

- Finally, you must "unlock" ANY new path you want to access, whether it is a Bridge, Base, or Mastery Path. You can do this by finding the Wraith Guide NPC for that Path somewhere in Harper Rock, and meeting their demands. The name of the Wraith Guide you're looking for will be displayed when you click the arrow pointing to the Path you wish to access.

Wraith Base Paths
Eskoph (Telepath):
Brujo (Mystic):
Hykajae (Shadow):
Revyia (Necromancer):
Varhexen (Allurist):
Raeserri (Killer):

Wraith Bridges
Vadasz (Seeker):
Klae (Shifter):
Gwyllia (Immortal):
Berlion (Illusionist):
Chematt (Summoner):
Hantu (Fadewalker):

Mastery
Not Yet Implemented

NOTE: The powers on the other five Base Paths will be DOUBLE that of those on your Starting Path.

Llet me explain to you how it works...In order to get bridge powers you will need the following:

1) You will need to unlock all powers leading to the bridge arrow. See this image for an example.

2) (Only applies to unlocks after the first one) 1000 EXP ready as payment for the vampire wraith guides to teach you. The type of EXP you need is dependant on the bridge or path you are unlocking, as follows:

Spirit: Shadow, Summoner, Mystic, Fadewalker
Mind: Seeker, Telepath, Illusionist, Allurist
Body: Shifter, Killer, Immortal, Necromancer

3) You will need to find the guide for your desired path or bridge. These move each day, so you might need help from a tracker to find them. I wont reveal their names here, but they are visible when you click on the locked bridge arrows. When you find them, click on their name.

Once you've been trained in return for 1000 exp (which you don't need to give the first time), the arrow will turn red, and you'll be able to enter the bridge area and learn new powers. Yes, the bridges link up to other paths, giving you a grand total of 90 available powers.

[Amaranthia]

I'm willing to send 10 Karma to anyone who is willing to completely update this. I find I just don't have enough time to do it properly myself.

EDIT:

Nix & Cash are doing it.

[Amaranthia]

After reading a couple of recent threads, I thought it'd be great to have an index - primarily for player-made Helpful Things, though game links are cool too. If you've created anything to assist players, please let me know and I'll add it to this. Resources that have become completely defunct/out-of-date will be removed.

Note: A lot of these right now are things I wrote, and that isn't intentional - it's just because I know what I wrote and where it is. Let me know any (up-to-date) info out there, and I'll VERY HAPPILY add it here!

RESOURCES
Pathopedia - an independently-run game wiki
Allie's Maps - a collection of maps for each individual building
Keara's Map - a Google Docs-based map of the City Grid and Sewers
Yahoo Contact List - a directory of players on YIM, the most widely-used instant messenger in Path
Welcome Thread - a good place to say hello for the first time!
Helpful Hints/Dumb Mistakes/Unlife Lessons - a thread for sharing dumb mistakes you've made, so others don't

GUIDES
Amaranthia's Guide - Great basic guide to things
How The Numbers Work Megathread - explains the benefits of raising each Stat and Skill
Cyberspace Stroll - A basic Hacking guide, written as a story for people who find that easier to understand

OFFICIAL GAME LINKS
Official Wiki - the official game wiki
Game Help - the official game help guide

[Amaranthia]

Subject: Your Guide to Path of the Vampire

More about System Security Levels:
The System Security Levels you can access with a character get higher as your character becomes better at hacking. We're not positive exactly how this works yet, but our best guess is that you are sent to a system with a Security Level at least 1+(Hacking*0.5) and at most 4+(Hacking*0.5).

More about System Layouts:
Systems seem to be laid out along the same four basic patterns, each named according to the letter they look like (n, t, u, and i). These patterns start out small, and the higher the system security level becomes, the more nodes are added on to the pattern. The node type always seems to stay the same, although the files located in that node change in each system. This includes files available in "File" nodes, countermeasures located in "Security" nodes, and countermeasure files located in "Administration" nodes. There do not currently appear to be "walls" between nodes - that is to say, if there is a "9_10_security" node and a "8_10_administration" node in the system you're hacking, they're always accessible from each other.

Note: These system maps are accurate up to the Security Level listed. If your Hacking is low-ish, you may run into a "dead end" because your Hacking skill is not high enough to have opened up all the nodes. I will not be updating these maps any further myself now that Hacking costs energy - if new/extended nodes become available and you want to spend your day's energy mapping them, let me know and I'll gladly add your images to this post.

N-Type System (SL 12, maxed)



T-Type System (SL 12, maxed)