The main setting of the game is The Disney School for the Performing Arts. It is a typical small college, set on the east coast of Florida, in the fictional town of St. Siena. For game purposes, it is south of Daytona but north of Cape Canaveral, approximately 1 hours drive from Orlando. There is also a small, private four-year college across town, called St. Siena College. For all intents and purposes, the schools are friendly rivals in town.
Do the characters have to be exactly the same as in the Disney property?
Yes and no. The character you choose should be a starting point, but you can change or modify their name, create a background for them, describe their motivations, and so on. You should try and stay true to their canon selves though, for that's the beauty of the game. For example, Cinderella might be called Elaine here, but she should still have a stepmother and a stepsister or two. Stitch could still be adopted, Nemo can have a birth defect on his arm, that sort of thing. It makes it more interesting to see how they translate into the real world. They were born and raised as real people, so they would have more depth than a fairytale person might.
Do I have to follow the character's storylines?
Only if you want to, but it's nice to have a nod to them. Your character certainly does not have to be with the person they are with in the property, but they might still have a tendency to gravitate towards the other characters from your movie. You can also choose to develop backstory with another player to stay true to a movie plot.
Does my character have to be a student at DSPA?
Not at all. Your character doesn’t even have to be a student at all, although we heavily prefer students over non-students. There are definitely things to explore. For instance, your character could be a resident of the town, a graduate doing TA work, or a student from St. Siena College. We will allow characters to be teachers on a limited, case-by-case basis.
What must my character do to attend DSPA?
DSPA is a specialized college, accepting only students who have completed a two-year program at an accredited college, either in General Studies or the Arts. Students must also have submitted a packet detailing their area of study, from acting to dance to set construction. Likewise, a student must specify how they are paying for their schooling (scholarships, loans, grants, etc). This can all be done in character posts. Since the AA degree is required, a student at DSPA must be at least twenty. A student from St. Siena can be eighteen. All characters must be eighteen or older in general.
What types of studies can my character take at DSPA?
Anything that a performing arts school would entail. From the obvious ones of dance and music to the behind the scenes subjects of architecture, lighting specialists, fashion and costume design, and directing. Be creative, and try to match one to your characters origins. For example, an incarnation of Tarzan might be studying Sound Technician, because of his love for sound imitations. Someone like Ariel might obviously study music, while Kuzco from The Emperor’s New Groove could study costume design.
Are there personal journals?
No, not like those in other games. There are no ‘magically linked’ journals here, no communication links. There is no requirement to post first person in a personal character journal. There will be a school bulletin board, but it is your choice to participate in it. If you want, you can do all interactions in the main forum. You CAN have a personal journal if you want, even an electronic one if you like, but it’s not a rule.
How are storylines done?
We expect that many plots will be character-started and driven, but the mod will provide major events for characters to play along with. The Mods will also be posting information publicly for anyone to act on, and will be Private Messaging info to individual players. If you believe your character would take a certain action or investigate something, simply email the mod, and you will be told what you find. For example: Belle and Stitch check out the Auditorium Three stage because of some thefts, and the mod tells them the costume department is missing all it’s female costumes. It is up to characters whom they share information with. Also, NPCs will meet with characters occasionally to dispense information.
How will OOC and IC crossover be handled? What about flaming?
If there is a player conflict over a PC knowing information that the other player considers OOC, the PC with the knowledge has the burden of proving that they learned in IC, either through an IC log or with viable witnesses. If they cannot prove that they learned it IC, then it will be deemed false information and the PC may lose reputation for propagating it, just as if a person told false information in life. The flaming rule is that three offences total, not monthly, is grounds for player ban. There are no exceptions to this rule.
Are Original Characters allowed?
No. Since this is a Disney game, there are almost limitless characters to choose from and personalize in whatever way, so there is no need for OCs.
Can any character be used from any Disney property? No, only characters from animated projects. So you can use Hook from Peter Pan but not Jack Sparrow (I’m sorry, Captain Jack Sparrow) from Pirates of the Caribbean.
Can we use any Played By?
Within reason, barring those on the Banned/Taken list. Ideally, a played by would look very similar to the animated character being portrayed. So Ariel would remain a redhead, Aladdin would probably be at least faintly Middle Eastern, and Esmeralda can’t be portrayed by Kate Winslet. If you want to be creative, choose a character with no human qualities, like Stitch or Nemo.
A very helpful place to find a suitable Played By is the community "Hollow_art" on Livejournal, which is searchable by description.