Player Guide
Introduction
Out Of Character (OOC) Information
"Out of character" information is usually described as things that you the player know but that your character does not. Attribute values, attack and damage bonuses and other such statistics are all OOC information.
Here OOC information is used to describe the things you as a player may need to know to have a great time in Avlis, from how to start playing to how to make your character to what not to do.
Players who join Avlis come from a variety of backgrounds. Some are familiar with D&D and PnP roleplaying but are not well-versed in the intricacies of NWN, while some know NWN very well but have little knowledge of D&D or roleplay. This guide has been written with both types of people in mind, so there may be parts that seem extremely simple to the reader. It is recommended that you read at least "Getting Started"; if the other sections do not seem to interest you, then you should jump ahead to the IC section and at least skim it before starting a character on Avlis.
General Guides
This chapter is exactly as the title states, a collection of very general guidelines to help you get along in Avlis. It is by no means exhaustive. The main reason for this is that an excellent roleplaying guide for multiplayer NWN has already been published, by Gruush. You can download it from the NWVault here. As a supplement to Gruush's guide, this section provides additional guidelines on classes in Avlis, advice on what alignment is and how to properly play it, and tips and advice from players and staff.
Major Meeting Points - By server, where you are most likely to find other players.
Languages - Languages Native to Avlis.
Things Not to Do
Avlis attempts to accommodate all types of players and playing styles. But as a heavy RP game world there are certain things that cannot be abided. Therefore the team has laid down a few rules. The objective of these rules, which are enforced regularly by the team, is to create and preserve the type of RP environment that we feel encourages true cooperative roleplay.
If you truly wish to create a memorable PC do so through exemplary and creative RP. Do not do it by creating a green-haired, purple-skinned, long-lost king of M'Chek abandoned in the swamps of Le'Or and raised by jedi ninja were-hamsters.
Why? Because:
a. M'Chek has no King
b. Le'Or has no swamps
c. The jedi would never admit a ninja to their ranks. No, not even a were-hamster ninja.
d. There are no jedi.
Special Features of Avlis
Online Avlis is an ongoing development project. As such, new features – features that are not available in single-player NWN – are constantly being added and optimized. This section will explain seven of those special features: crafting and artificing, magic, the economy, player-run guilds, Avlissian prestige classes, custom races, and the death system.
- Important: See Systems and Tools for a full list of the current Avlis-specific modifications and introductions of systems, classes and skills, etc.
Artificing - Creating magic items on Avlis.
Crafting - Creating armor, clothing, gems, healing kits, jewelry, potions, weapons, and more. Gathering resources, mining and wood cutting.
Custom Races - New custom Avlis races and how to create a character with one.
Death and Dying - Avlis' death system.
The Economy and Persistence - The Avlis economy. Persistent chests, corpses, and merchants.
Guilds - The rules for creating a guild in Avlis.
Magic System Information on how magic works on Avlis.
Prestige Classes - New custom Avlis prestige classes.
Psionics - A new class and powers for psionics on Avlis.
Avlis Community
In Character (IC) Information
"In character" information is information that your character knows within the game world. Here is it used to describe the background information on Avlis that this part of the guide explains. By reading this section you will learn some of the history of Avlis, as well as information about the races who populate it, the nations they have formed, and the gods and goddesses who watch over them.
The History of Avlis
Ongoing History, including server-specific events
The Races of Avlis
Human, elf, dwarf, gnome, halfling, half-elf, half-orc: these are typical player character races in D&D and are the races NWN allows you to play. All of these races exist on Avlis, in addition to many, many more, some of which you can select as the race of your character.
While some of the races are identical to the descriptions laid out in D&D game literature, most are slightly different. They are... well, they are Avlissian. And there are some races that do not exist in D&D at all. All of these races have unique developments in accordance with the history and culture of Avlis.
Avlis Geography
The map below shows the main continent of the world of Avlis. It is divided into a variety of nations and regions. The game servers on Avlis have begun in the south, extending further and further north additional servers are added. As of this writing the nations of M'Chek, T'Nanshi, Ferrell and Deglos are on servers, as are the cities of Mikona (capital of M'Chek), Elysia (an independent city in T'Nanshi), and Le'Or (capital of T'Nanshi). This chapter will give descriptions of the nations and regions, starting with Mikona and working north up to Tyedu.
Culture and Religion
Culture of Avlis: Classes, which are also social roles and integral to culture, Art and Literature, Religion and Magic.
Deific Chart, showing all the gods and their portfolios in brief