COMIC BOOK TIME & GHOST WRITING:Sometimes, as a writer, you're tied up in your own plot, but another pops up that you'd like your character to be part of. As a comic book game, posts in the IC thread do not necessarily need to be linear. If you, as Player A, are running a plot but Player B is doing a Cross-Over with a team your character is affiliated with, you can write both simultaneously.
Likewise, characters appear in numerous issues each month, written by several different authors. In Odyssey, we're also inviting you to use that to your advantage. If you're particularly fond of someone's interpretation of a character and would like to use them in a spot for a Chapter, you may approach the controlling player and ask to do so. That player is allowed to deny you flat-out, or they can lend their character out with as many or few guidelines as they see fit for you to write the Chapter with. In this instance, you're given temporary control over a character as a guest or ghostwriter to carry out a Chapter elsewhere while the controlling player continues their own story. The controlling player may ask to proofread any or all posts or ask for you to retract or edit posts as they see fit if actions or instances don't match their vision.
CHAPTERS:'Chapters' is simply a fun name for contained player plots and story arcs. These are the stories told by you, the player and governed by those of you who take on the driving role. Sometimes these Chapters may be the work of one person, other times it may be the work of a duo or even a small party of players who created something together.
This is the bread and butter of the RP, moving it forward and filling out the world as players work together to tell stories and build the setting that directly impacts not only their character but also those playing alongside them in 'Supporting' and 'Roaming' roles. There's no defined length for a Chapter; it could be as short as a single post or as long as a story spanning over thirty posts. Think of a Chapter as an episode of a television show or a single comic issue.
All players must contribute towards the Chapters in the IC and drive their characters both independently and together. Equally, it is important to read other players' Chapters and make note of significant events or even just 'broadcasted' ones to reference and relate to within your own posts. Small efforts like this go a long way in making the world feel alive and connected.
Don't feel you have to be joined at the hip at all times, though; the same plot could be told through two characters without them constantly needing to be in the room at all times. To bring about a great recent example, re-examine 'Falcon and the Winter Soldier', while Sam and Bucky spent the impactful scenes together, if it wasn't for the events they accomplished apart, the story would not have fully come together.
CROSSOVERS:Crossovers are the icing on the cake; this is where the larger picture starts to form. A crossover is defined here as a player-coordinated and driven interaction between two or more character plots in the IC. To phrase it another way, it's when two or more 'Driving' character plots converge on the same thread. Like a 'team-up' between Flash and the Green Arrow that brings in all those associated characters. A Crossover may be as simple as a one-time team-up or a small part of a larger overarching story, depending on the ambitions of the player(s) coordinating the story and those involved. There is no limit as to how many crossovers can take place at any one time as they will be completely moderated by those involved and not the GM Team.
Crossovers may take place in a single city or even multiple cities, spanning up to a national event, depending on the number of players involved in the current crossover. Players are not required to participate in a crossover if they do not want to, and if you have approached a player and they have turned you down, we ask that you please respect their wishes. That said, all players should consider participating in a crossover from time to time if only to recharge and avoid burnout due to lack of interaction. You will never be required to remain within the crossover for its entire run unless you become integral to its story, in which case it is only respectful to do so.
Ultimately, the structure of each crossover will be dependent upon the player(s) organizing it. It should be noted that a crossover should never change the status quo of the game, and while consequences and fallout is encouraged, it should be limited to only those involved unless special permissions have been granted.
CRISES:Crises are large-scale events that affect the roleplay on a massive scale. These events can be global, universal or even multi-dimensional. Ideally, the occurring Crisis will affect all players, but all players need not directly contribute to the Crisis at hand. The outcome of these events will affect the roleplay's status quo, wiping the slate clean or drastically changing the present world. This could mean something like DC's Rebirth, where abandoned characters can be reset, allowing new players to assume their roles without the need to continue previous stories, or Marvel's Civil War, where characters and their beliefs will be challenged, changing the alignment of different characters and the shape of different team rosters. These events won't take place often, but when they do, they will be designed to directly impact the RP.
