FAQs

[Embers]

FAQS

Current users and potential members are not required to read the FAQs. However, if after you’ve read the other threads in the Site Functioning and IC Reference boards you still have questions, please refer here and browse by category. If you feel that a question not already listed needs to be included, message a staff member.

adopting

Q: How come there's only a few characters in the Adoption Center?

A: The AC is comparable--out of character--to a shelter. Only so many animals are available at a time. There are usually six or more characters available at once, but if many adoptions have taken place, new characters may not have been added yet.

Q: What if I don't like any of the characters in the Adoption Center?

A: Characters cycle through the AC on an almost daily basis. If you don’t like any of the available characters, you should not feel obligated to choose one of them. If you wait a day, or even two, there will be different options for you to choose from, some of which may be even rarer than the ones you initially viewed.

Q: I saw an unclaimed character I really liked. Can I reserve it until I can afford to adopt it?

A: No. Staff will not reserve characters for you. This entirely defeats the purpose of saving up EXP. If you don’t have the money to purchase a new character, you are not entitled to it. There may be others who would also like that character, and have enough to pay for it. This of course is only applicable to characters after your first. Also keep in mind, you cannot post incomplete forms, as this is considered reserving, and this is an offense.

Q: I love this character, but I don't like the gender! Can I change it?

A: Not immediately, no. However, you can save up EXP and purchase a gender change from our Exchange Shop if your character’s gender bothers you that much.

Q: Can my character start as something older then a baby?

A: For the most part, no. This is the premise of AFW, and if you object to that, the site may not be for you. However, you can save up to purchase a custom character, and you may decide to have that character be of a different age. Keep in mind that your character need not be a “baby” as we might think about it—thosethat emerge from their cocoons are mature, full-sized natives. They complete the necessary physical growth cycle prenatally.

Q: How long will an unclaimed character stay available before being taken down again?

A: Unclaimed characters are removed after every cycle of biographies added to the Adoption Center. These cycles generally take place daily. Keep in mind that this does not stand for characters that are products of on site breedings; these will be available until they have been adopted.

Q: I changed my mind about my character's name/personality. Can I change it?

A: Users are permitted to edit the personality of character. However, for record purposes, the staff would appreciate if characters' names are not changed. If you feel like your character is in desperate need of a name change, PM a staff member to talk to them about it.

Q: I've seen some people with really cool character designs! Can I change my own design once I adopt my character?

A: Not immediately, no. Though, you can save up your EXP to purchase a new appearance, or a new rare appearance for your character.

Q: Will a species rarer than an Aboriginal ever turn up in the Adoption Center, or will I only be able to get one by evolving my Aboriginal?

A: If you want a character rarer than an Aboriginal, you are better off purchasing a new rare character, or evolving a current character. Very rarely Occults will be available, but the chance of seeing one is very slim.

role play

Q: How many threads can I post on?

A: You may post in up to three threads at a time with one character. If staff catches you in more than three threads, you will receive a significant EXP deduction.

Q: Do prompts count as threads?

A: No, they do not, but keep in mind that you may only be involved in one prompt thread per character.

Q: What if I post ninety nine words? Is that okay?

A: You will not be penalized for posting one word under the limit. If a post is significantly under our minimum, you will be deducted ten EXP per post. Also know that if staff continues to see a multitude of ninety or eighty word posts, EXP will also be deducted.

Q: I heard there were different layers to post in. How come I only see the Orchard?

A: There are different layers to post in, yes, but none of them will be visible to you until you have the number of posts required to access them. To find out when you will be able to access a layer, refer to our Layer Access thread in this board.

Q: No one's responding to my RP post. What should I do?

A: If no one has responded to your role play post, try popping into the cbox chat and ask if someone will respond; there are plenty of friendly people looking to get into a thread. If you haven’t received a reply within the week, talk to a staff member, and they’ll try to set you up with someone to role play with. Keep in mind, it may be a wiser decision to respond to someone else’s open thread rather than make your own.

Q: How come some boards give EXP and others don't?

A: Only IC boards will award EXP. This is because EXP would be much too easy to gain if it was awarded in boards like the Humdrum or Art board. The idea behind EXP is having to actually role play to attain it.

experience (exp)

Q: I need more EXP. Is there any way to get a lot of it really quickly?

A: There are a variety of ways to get EXP, the most prominent being posting IC. If you are looking to make a load of EXP at once, you’re out of luck; EXP is supposed to build up slowly through continuous effort, therefore it’s hard to attain a large sum. You can look out for prompt threads, which may give you a large EXP prize upon completion, try participating in any current contests, or buy tickets for the AFW lottery. You also have the daily chance of being visited by a random event NPC.

Q: I decided I don't like my character, and will be killing it off. Will I have to pay one hundred EXP to get a new one?

A: Yes, you will have to pay. You do not have character “slots,” meaning if you kill off a character, you don’t have an empty space to adopt a new one for free. It’s like adopting a real animal; if I adopt a cat from my local humane society, just because it passes away doesn't mean I get a new one at no cost. I’d have to pay for a new cat.

Q: Can I gift a friend with some of my EXP/buy them something from the shop?

A: Proboards v5 has given us new functioning, allowing you to transfer EXP and items to other users with ease. Navigate to the profile of the user you'd like to gift. In the upper right hand corner of the profile, you should find options to both "give" items, and to "send donation," if you'd like to transfer EXP. This function may also be used by the owners of art shop threads in order to charge for art.

breeding

Q: What pairings are acceptable or unacceptable in regards to breeding?

A: Any and all pairings are acceptable on site, including related character pairings, bi-specie pairings, same gender pairings, etc. since AFW does not entertain traditional reproduction.

Q: What determines how a child of two creatures turns out?

A: The phenotype of a child will always be within the range of the parent creatures. So if I have two, solid colored felines, then their baby will also be solid colored, seeing that the solid coloration is the most common for felines. Now if I have a solid feline and a wild patterned feline, the rarest of feline colors, their child could have any pattern from any category on the rarity list. A random generator will select which pattern the offspring will show.

Q: What happens if an Absconding species breeds with an Occult or Aboriginal?

A: The most common species in a pair are the most dominant; therefore, if an Aboriginal and an Occult breed, the offspring will always be an Aboriginal.

Q: My character's mating resulted in a mix! Can I claim it for the same amount of EXP as a full canine or feline offspring?

A: No. Though this may seem unfair, this is to prevent users from purposely breeding together canines and felines for the sake of cheaply adopting a rare species. We apologize for this, but you will have to pay a good sum of EXP to purchase the right to adopt a rare character.

Q: If the gender doesn't matter in regards to breeding, what's the difference between male and female creatures?

A: If in the entirety of your life you never procreate, would that make you genderless? No. Aside breeding, there are differences in males and females, most prominently differences in actions, problem solving, thinking, behavior, rate of maturity, etc.

miscellaneous

Q: How do you determine what coat color a native evolves into?

There is always a direct translation of coat colors between evolutions. For example, if I have a black Aboriginal canine, it will always evolve into a black Occult canine.

Q: How do the Occult abilities work? Do they get their visions from an admin account or make them up on their own?

A: Occult visions are up to interpretation. You do not receive visions from an admin, you can feel free to be as creative as you like. Remember that Occults cannot read minds, and that does not give you the right to power play. This does open the door into plots in which your character can expect or anticipate what will happen in the future.

Q: Can I draw and color my own versions of the canines or felines to play as?

A: No. The colors and patterns listed in the Coat Rarity thread in the IC Reference board are the only ones available. Even if you create a custom character, those are what you have to choose from. If there is a pattern that you would like to see in the future, head to our Contribute board where you can suggest patterns. If you would like to do colors to simply benefit the site, send our artist, Aries, a PM, and you may be able to work something out.

Q: Someone broke the rules! Where can I report them?

A: PM a staff member when someone has broken the rules. Please do not talk about rule breakers in the cbox, and do not contact them yourself. This is for the administration to handle.

Q: I have to leave for a while--do I need to tell someone?

A: Because of all the information that needs to be stored to help the site run efficiently, we do not have activity checks regularly, and we will only delete inactive accounts sparingly. You are not required to tell anyone, but we do have an Absences board, and it would be courteous of you to post there just so your fellow role players know that you will not be posting for awhile.

Q: Will the mixes get their own evolutions?

A: Currently, this is being debated. Our artist, Aries, may make line arts for these in the future, but for now, we are not dealing with this issue. If you find yourself with a mixed character and wanting to evolve, we will give you the opportunity to choose whether your mix will evolve into a feline or canine, for both potential evolutions. Meaning you could have your mix evolve first into an Occult Feline, and then into an Absconding Canine if you so desire.

Q: I keep getting bad random events! Is there a way to stop getting them?

A: You can purchase immunity from random events in our Exchange Shop, but this will also mean you are immune from positive events as well.

Q: If I make a custom character, can I give it wings/other mutations?

A: No. Customs only mean you can choose whether it is canine or feline, appearance, gender, and age. This does not mean you can tack on other mutations or variations that are a foreign concept to this site.