With the launch of Outbreak, it’s important that we as a community understand the theme and make sure the stories and characters we develop are a good fit for it. Like all RP sims, over time we expect to evolve through the story arcs and character development that happen in Outbreak...

With that said, we began noticing a few things that may not fit the current theme of Outbreak and need your to help set better expectations and guidelines around character appearance moving forward:

Post-Apoc Gear

Outbreak takes place a mere 3 weeks into the apocalypse, which is not even fully realized or noted to be an apocalypse. At present it is only a fast spreading and dangerous disease nearing pandemic levels. Outside of the rare cosplayer, 'wasteland' type of gear simply would not exist.  Fallout and Mad Max took place tens and hundreds of years after their respective collapses and given the theme those clothes would fit. Outbreak, however, is not far enough along for that type of clothing and gear to make sense.

We understand that SL marketplace is rife with amazing post-apoc gear; we simply recommend you be mindful and put the effort in piecing together an ensemble that makes sense in this environment.

Battle Suits / Comic Book Attire

Also prevalent on the marketplace, full size battle or combat suits are just not a thing and not acceptable in Arklay. The modern warfighter goes to war in a uniform top and bottom with boots and some sort of vest or load bearing type of device on them - they do not go to war in some sort of latex/neoprene combination that would likely boil them alive.

Outbreak is about everyday survivors living off of what they find and not comic book heroes or futuristic 'tactical catsuits'.

Gasmasks

Unless you are dealing at that moment in time with a noxious chemical or biological agent there's no need for a gas mask. By their design gasmasks are hot, uncomfortable and dramatically limit your field of vision. Gasmasks also utilize filters which over time will wear out and as a result make the air harder and harder to breath.

Outbreak is not a radiological deadzone - no one would be running around in a gas mask unless absolutely necessary and only for short periods. Day to day activities in a gas mask would be taxing and actual combat in one would be excruciating.

Firearms

Your choice of weapon in Outbreak can say a lot about your character, which is often why people spend time and effort to craft weapon skills into their backstory. In keeping with a realistic theme, it's important to consider a) what kind of ballistic weapons are available and b) what kind of melee weapons would be readily available.

Outbreak has limited the firearms (and crossbows) to those which are provided, at no cost to the players, by the sim. This range includes hand guns, shot guns, a crossbow, and even a couple assault rifles. We understand that there is no end to the variation of weapons out there, however, Outbreak official weapons are scripted to work with the Outbreak HUD and Outbreak ammunition as part of the scavenging system. For this reason, no other firearms are permitted (or frankensteined home-made firearms like a potato gun) and those seen with them may get a friendly request to remove them to avoid confusion.

Melee Weapons

Melee weapons are entirely up to you, within reason and must be readily available in our modern-day setting. It would be unrealistic to see everyone toting around a katana or longsword, so when choosing your melee weapon of choice please consider your characters background thoughtfully and how they would have come by such a weapon. Most melee weapons would be things your character could find easily; either from home or at a local store. If it helps, think about what you have in your own home now, what you would bring with you, and what you could realistically craft out of things you might find when scavenging.

Katana/Samurai Sword

Pop culture has made swords a sexy choice of weapon in a zombie apocalypse. In reality, the massive majority of katana style swords found in America would be near useless in an actual survival situation and are wrought with quick dulling blades, bad balancing and being prone to grip breakages. Most katanas would wind up being more of a threat to the user than any sort of undead or living adversary; in reality, it would take years of training to be able to even start to be used effectively.

Sex and Bondage

The community and role-play is adult-themed and sex is part of the territory. Just be smart about it and think of it realistically - people running for their lives and trying to survive aren’t likely going to be fooling around in the middle of town square - not with the high risk of the Infected lurking about. Furthermore, public display of BDSM (leashes, bondage accessories, etc.) would attract the wrong kind of attention by AES and Epsilon groups; we encourage these themes be played out in the more secluded areas of the sim.

• This topic was modified 9 years, 10 months ago by  Nadir Taov.
• This topic was modified 9 years, 10 months ago by  Nadir Taov.
• This topic was modified 9 years, 9 months ago by  esperanza-hernandoz.
• This topic was modified 9 years, 9 months ago by  Nadir Taov.