DRESSING ROOM FAQ

[ulternnpc]

Updated as of: 02/05/2023

1. Just what is a “Dressing Room” anyway?

According to one of the mods of netherworld_rpg : A dressing room is a roleplay that has minimal rules, minimal moderator involvement, and never require applications – you make a journal and can post immediately.

Back in ye olden days of Livejournal Roleplaying, they were pretty popular back in the late 2000s so they were hard to miss if you were ever browsing for games. Many of these dressing room games are usually series specific (examples: Yu-Gi-Oh!, Sonic the Hedgehog, Ace Attorney, Shin Megami Tensei, etc.), and they do not require an application process unlike the more traditional fair of games. They can be considered similar to a sandbox game which are also very relaxed in terms of activity checks a regular game may require of other players.

Nowadays dressing rooms are more of an ancient relic of the past, but we at Faraway Place are hoping to keep the spirit of it alive!

2. Do I need to write an application to join?

There is no need for that! Simply just join both the IC and OOC communities and post away!

3. What the heck is an Ultern?

A completely brand new region, full of mysteries to be solved! …or not at all! You can read more about Ultern in the Settings Post!

4. What if someone is already playing the character I want?

That is a-ok! Because this is a dressing room, people have different interpretations or versions of the characters they play. So we really don’t mind if there are two or three Pokemon Trainer Reds running around.

5. What kind of characters are allowed in the dressing room?

• From all mediums – It can be characters from the core series games, spin-off games, manga & comics, or even the anime. (eg. Ash Ketchum, Todd Snap from Pokemon Snap, X from Pokemon Adventures, Bidoof from PMD: Explorers series)
• AU (Alternate Universe) – These are characters from more altered versions of the Pokemon world that slightly diverge from its original canon. An example of this would be the following:
  • A protagonist who is a genuine Team Rocket member.
  • A character from a medieval themed version of the Pokemon world.
  • A character from a post-apocalyptic Pokemon world where the human population has halved due to some unexplained event.
• CRAU Characters – Pokemon characters who are or were originally played from past or existing RP games (ex. Ryslig, Luceti, etc.) and are imported into the dressing room carrying their current physical appearance, their memories, experiences and even their powers with them.
• Original Characters – Your very own original character with their set of goals and experiences with the Pokemon world and are not limited by the video game’s mechanics!
• ROM Hacks, Nuzlockes, Fan Games, Fan Comics – Characters with unique Pokemon fusions, coming from Pokemon fan regions, as long as they’re fan content created for the Pokemon series they count!

6. Do I have a limit on how many Pokemon to bring?

Your character will arrive on the region with whatever Pokemon they currently have on hand. But much like in the games, characters can only carry up to six Pokemon. However the PCs in the Pokemon Center will enable players to transfer their Pokemon somehow despite being cut off from the rest of the world. We don’t know the mechanics of how this works yet, but maybe whoever worked on the system did…?

7. What kind of Pokemon can I catch?

Your character can encounter and catch all kinds of Pokemon, with a few exceptions. Legendaries and rare Pokemon will be difficult to catch, and less likely to be encountered much like in the games. Shiny Pokemon also happen to be extremely rare to encounter, so we highly encourage that their rarity should be reflected in your tags.

8. Does my character need to have a Pokemon on hand upon joining?

Nope! If your character has no Pokemon with them, then it’s completely fine and there are no consequences to it. Luckily the Wild Pokemon there in Ultern are generally harmless and don’t attack people on sight, unless you intend to? But why would you do that?

9. What’s this about upgrading the Pokedex?

There’s a lot of Pokemon that aren’t listed in any region outside of Ultern! Professor Banyan, the region's Pokemon Professor, will be more than happy to give upgrades to any character that just so happen to own a Pokedex, or a device that has a Pokedex feature, of their own.

10. Once you die are you dead? (Is there permadeath?)

That is completely up to you! If you plan to revive your character, they will happen to show up right in front of the Mystery Shrine. These peculiar-looking ancient shrines can be found in various parts of Ultern, but no one quite knows who or what they're made for. Even archaeologists are baffled by its origins. Affixed inside them is a small warped mirror piece if your character looks close enough. There won't be any penalties or side-effects to reviving your character. That said, we advise not to kill them off too frequently.

11. How do I go on hiatus/drop characters?

Just mention it casually at the OOC comm, and you’re good to go! Though it's completely optional if you'd like to mention about dropping a character. And if you ever change your mind, you can always bring said dropped character back into the dressing room anytime by the way!

12. Can I canon update my character?

Absolutely! The details really aren’t necessary and it’s left up your imagination. For example, maybe they just disappeared one day only to reappear the next day and now with extra experience gained from their world. Whatever works!

13. Will our activity be monitored?

Dressing Rooms don't require activity checks, so you don't have to worry about meeting a set number of replies to continue. So go tag at your own pace and have fun!

14. What are these entry tags for?

In the IC community, you might notice some tags attached onto the posts. They're mostly done for organizing and tracking. Here are some of the following tags you can use in the comm:

• voicetesting — You can use this tag to let other players know you're voicetesting this character.
• mingle post — Generally used for events either you or the mods have created. This lets characters tag back other characters who have commented on the mingle post.
• closed post — Only used for characters who are planned to interact with another specific character or two.
• location: (LOCATION NAME) — This is just to indicate where the post takes place.
• pc: Character Name (username) — Used only for the characters posting in the front page of the comm.

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For any comments, questions or concerns, feel free to address here in this post!

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Comments

[timidlyblooming]

Nitpicky and probably-over-thinking-it question, but I like details, so… especially pertinent for our anipoke muses!!

The characters can all (to some degree) understand Japanese. Their knowledge of other languages varies Satoshi/Ash being confused by Dent/Cilan’s English and Iris translating early on….

The in-universe written languages are either corrupted kana, vaguely Japanese-esque, or (later, when full alphabets were made) often simple substition ciphers that correspond to English letters and can be used to write English or romanizations of Japanese words.

… would Ulternians use familiar scripts?! Would it look vaguely Japanese like the early scripts in AG and DP? Or would they also use the scripts we see in BW! and onward that can read as English words too?

[timidlyblooming]

In short, can our characters read anything here or is the script so far removed, they can’t? Is it very obscure? Is it legible only to folks from eastern regions? People from Hoenn only? Can our characters study it?

[primeapeshit]

i ALSO have a language question!!! the oc i'm thinking of bringing is mute and uses sign language, or just types things out on her phone if that fails. what's the status of Magic Universal Translation on these fronts—if it exists at all, does it apply to sign language? does it apply to her text?

[ulternnpc]

While there might be some language barrier with the more elderly folks, younger generations should be able to understand any text messages fine! As for sign language there might be some difficulty as Ultern have their own language--and it really depends upon the NPC whether they have learned it or not.

That said, not all NPCs will be specifically from Ultern! There are those who are from outside the region just like the Player Characters who are happy to help out with any language barrier.

[droppedballs]

technology questions!

1. you mentioned sns in an answer above about languages - so what's phone technology like? would a device from a different region be able to call it? does everyone need to pre-emptively block irwin's pokegear number would getting an ultern phone be as easy as walking into a store and buying one?

2. speaking of sns - what kind of social media is there? is there an ultern tiktok? can i become an influencer-- no please don't let me become an influencer

[ulternnpc]

1.) Devices with communicative features should be able to contact other devices from other regions! So yes a smartphone can either reach out to a Poryphone, Xtranciever, and a PokeGear. Though for contacting the latter it's just limited to just voice calls.

The only exception is Kalosians with Holo Casters where they might find difficulty reaching out to other regional devices due to its use of holograms instead. Thanks I guess Lysandre

But if your character prefers to get a new phone, it's not too hard to find a shop and purchase one of their own.

2.) Here are some of the most popular social media sites and apps used in Ultern:

Pippi - It's basically Ulternian Twitter.

Mimmeo - This is Instagram, and named after a certain Ulternian Pokemon that exists in the wild.

Pikadouga - Basically Youtube and Nicodouga combined. Complete with the option to view comments scrolling along the video.

Pikipek - Tiktok but Ulternian!

[newphonewhodis]

Ulsai, dear mods! I’ve got a couple questions for you:

1. Are the players able to make their own posts in the IC community or are we limited to commenting within the Mod-created mingles? I’m assuming we can make our own as that is the spirit of a traditional DR but wanted to be sure!

2. This one is just for my curiosity: Most Pokémon games have iconic foods for their region, be it region-wide and/or town-specific (malasadas or Casteliacones for example!) What are some of the favorite foods/local cuisine of the Ultern region? Does Turnbloom have any specialties?

[ulternnpc]

1.) Yes! Just like every other Dressing Room, you're free to set up a new post in the main comm if you wish.

2.) There's a variety of local dishes in Ultern. Here's what they are:

Yago Chanpuru - A favorite amongst Ulternians, it's a stir-fry dish made with tofu, vegetables, thin meat slices, and the bitter Yago Berries -- which are extremely rare to find in Hoenn, but surprisingly common in Ultern.

Turnbloom Crepes - A snack that's basically a thin rolled-up fried pancake. It has a strong brown sugar taste, and unlike regular crepes that Kalosians would make it doesn't use eggs as an ingredient, making it mildly sweet. Old menu signs would write it as "Chinbin", which is its Ulternian name.

Ulternian Soba - It's soba (buckwheat) noodles! But they aren't made of buckwheat, and instead made of just wheat. So they're very thick and chewy. They're different enough from the soba noodles those from Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh are used to. Also on old menu signs, it'd be written as "Ultern Suba".

Sugar Doughnuts - Basically just deep-fried doughnuts but are dense and less fluffy. The doughnuts form a large curved crack in the middle, making it look like it's smiling. It's said that eating them brings good luck!

Zenzai - Though actually a known traditional dessert in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh, the Ulternian version of it prefers having its sweet azuki beans and mochi dessert with generous amounts of shaved ice on top while served cold. Which will probably confuse those from Kanto, Johto and Sinnoh. Those from Hoenn however may depend, as their version of the Zenzai is a bit similar to the Ulternian one -- but there are areas in Hoenn that serves the traditional hot version of zenzai as well.

[(Anonymous)]

Does this DR use the traditional four-move limit? I've seen various forms of Pokemon roleplay do everything from keep it to expand it to ignoring limits (other than level) entirely, so I wanted to double check as I'm filling out my info. Apologies if it's already been mentioned somewhere and I just keep missing it lol.

[ulternnpc]

Yes, we'll be using the traditional four-move limit. As most Pokemon-related media follow the main series games' battle mechanics. Even the anime has shifted to using a four-move limit post-S1.

To accomodate this, each town or city will have specialized shops called a Move Parlor where the Move Reminder and Move Deleter can be found in case your character would like to change their Pokemon's movesets.

[crystalmaster]

This looks so cute! I'm gathering it's panfandom judging from the Setting page? (... Or maybe not since it looks like all the characters coming in are from Pokemon. But that's awesome!) What are your feelings on CRAUs (characters coming in from other RPs)? Like, specifically, a character from another fandom who's been active in another Pokemon RP and thus is familiar with the Pokemon world?

[ulternnpc]

Thanks for asking! We're only accepting characters within the Pokemon series, whether they be from the main games, spin-offs, the anime or the various manga out there, etc. So unfortunately we cannot accept characters from another different series, even if they are AU'd into the Pokemon world.

Pokemon characters with CRAU however, are totally fine.

[serperiority]

Are there hotels in Turnbloom city or do we all just sleep in the Pokemon Center’s lodgings like peasants? (Dibs on the top bunk!) What if there are too many people to fit?

[serperiority]

Well, I guess some trainers prefer camping out, but… but yeah, places to stay?
And what do Drifted do about money? Is our currency from home good? Can we use a credit card???

[domeinion]

What's your policy on characters from fanworks or weird collaborative fanmade canons? I'm mainly just asking because I have a few Twitch Plays Pokémon journals, like Alice here.

[ulternnpc]

We have no problems with that! Bring them in! 🥳

[past_it]

How would it work for characters who technically don't own any pokemon?

[ulternnpc]

Characters without a Pokemon can easily rent them from either a nearby Pokemon Center or the ranch in route 3!

That or receive a Pokemon from Professor Banyan who would be more than happy to offer an Ulternian Starter!

If you want to be really mean your character(s) have the option of stealing Pokemon too. Basically the world is your Cloyster 👀👌

[serperiority]

Does Turnterrace Tunnel have lighting? Or do travellers have to carry their own lights?

[ulternnpc]

Since it's a public road people use from day to day it has lighting which is well maintained. They can't have people getting lost on their way home after all!

[serperiority]

Where do the native people of Ultern bury their dead?

(This became relevant because Ghost types.)

[ulternnpc]

In Ohritori Island, there's Route 4's Memorial Garden. Other later locations will have a gravesite set somewhere, so at least everyone has a place to bury their dead not too far from where they are!

[serperiority]

Do Pokemon need their own tickets to go on rides in the Rainbow Plaza or do they get to share a ticket with their trainers?
Or does it depend on how large/heavy the Pokemon is?

[ulternnpc]

The Pokemon share a ticket with their trainer! So woohoo, ride away with your buddy Pokemon!

[gianthobo]

... How big are the building entrances/ceilings? Typical size? AKA will poor AZ here be stuck outside most of the time?

[ulternnpc]

Most of them are the typical size, but AZ may be able to enter inside a Pokemon Center which are built to be spacious enough for a large Pokemon to fit in!

[grapetreasure]

Regarding characters who have a Rotom Phone that has access to their Pokemon Boxes remotely (mostly Paldean trainers), can they still access it there without going to the PC in the Pokemon Center?

[ulternnpc]

Unfortunately Pokemon Boxes cannot be access remotely, however everyone will be able to access their boxes the old fashioned way of going to the PC in the Pokemon Center!

[grapetreasure]

More questions! You see, she has a Miraidon, a legendary Pokemon and she mostly uses it to ride around Paldea in her canon even before she can access its battle form. Should I nerf Miraidon in some way here?

[ulternnpc]

Since this is a dressing room and not a strict RP game, it's up to you the player to do as you see fit! As long as you don't godmode between other players it'll be a-okay!

[grapetreasure]

So I realize something. How will the Terastal phenomenon works in the Ultren region since there are no crystals from Area Zero? Does it not work there or it works differently?

[ulternnpc]

Sorry for the late reply! But from my understanding about how Terastalization works in-game -- if there's any remaining Terastal energy contained within the Tera Orb, you can still use it. But once it's used up, you'll have to replenish that energy either from Pokemon Centers or Tera Crystals that appear from time to time in Paldea.

In the case of Ultern: There's only one known source where Paldeans can replenish Terastal energy, and it's only in Turnterrace Tunnel. The Mystery Dungeon in there contains a Terastal Den that drifts in Pokemon from time to time.

[buson]

Has anyone died in Ultern and shown up in front of the Mystery Shrine? OOC, pretty sure it's never happened 'til now, but in-universe? If it has, would it be information a character who snoops around a lot asks around might learn about?

No plans to kill off any of my characters, just wondering if it's information my character could be privvy to to reassure someone else! ^o^;

[ulternnpc]

Yes they have! However it's a pretty rare occurrence but written records of it could still be found in public access such as the library--and there may be those who would talk about it if asked.

[stormkingofshepherds]

Hey, I'm kind of interested in this game, just have a few questions about characters.

1. Are there any rules about the same player playing two characters from the same series? Does it matter how close the two characters are?
1b. Also, what if they're both OCs? For example, I have a pair of characters that are adoptive father and daughter, and they work better as a duo, and I can't really get someone else to play one of them since they're basically both my OCs.
1c. Could I play the original and CRAU versions of my OC at the same time? They're actually different characters thanks to the specific CRAU mechanics.

2. Several of my characters were originally built in the Pokemon Tabletop United system, which allows Pokemon to have multiple Abilities and up to six moves. Would I have to reduce the movesets to 4 and the Abilities to one?
2b. PTU also has several custom Abilities, would I be allowed to use those?
2c. If yes to the above, it also has a type of Ability called a "connection" Ability, which activates based on a certain specific move and also allows the move to not take up a move slot. Would I be allowed to let them have the same effect here?

3. This character specifically has a Legendary (Zapdos) on his team, who has the power of Legendary Auras that let them channel much stronger powers than most typical Pokemon can accomplish. Would I have to nerf those, or just use them responsibly? Their one Aura at the current canonpoint is also the least narratively overpowered as well.
3b. Legendaries in PTU can take on human form, would it be okay to have Zapdos take on a human form and occasionally play them as a separate character?

4. I have a journal for Jared from Manly Guys Doing Manly Things, who is a Pokemon trainer but from a big crossover setting. Does he count as enough of a Pokemon character to app here? What about the other characters in his comic?
4b. I also have some OCs that are from crossover fanworks, could I bring them or would they not be allowed?
4c. In general, are there any rules about OCs knowing canon characters?

[ulternnpc]

Hello! Thank you for taking interest in our game. We're still delibrating on some of your questions and we'll get back to you once we have an answer! 😊

[silvertongueheir]

A slightly weird question-I know the FAQ says characters from any official Pokemon media are okay-does that include the recent Path to the Peak webseries? Since it's as far as I can tell the only official Pokemon media where Pokemon are explicitly fictional, apart from an obscure manga that's also about the Pokemon card game but presented like Yugioh. And if it is allowed, would it be possible for the characters' signature cards to become "real" upon entering Ultern?

[ulternnpc]

Absolutely, they're allowed in! Said TCG manga the Pokemon media is also fictional but they don't really break the 4th wall and only make references hey yoo

The cards are allowed to become "real" to! It's all up to the player's imagination really but I'd imagine it would be fun for a TCG player to suddenly find their favorite Pokemon suddenly real!

[viridescented]

Hi, I've heard about this game recently, and I had a question that'll affect what character I may throw into the game.

I know OCs are allowed, and practically any official Pokémon media is given the green light. I don't know if this has been asked before, but what's the say so about Pokémon Mystery Dungeon protagonists, more specifically a PMD character that was human turned into a Pokémon. Would that be allowed, or is PMD characters only referring to plot important characters like Groyvle (Explorers) and Nuzleef (Super) for example. And if so, would the human still be a Pokémon or would they go back to being a human the moment they step foot into the game? Apologies if this is a silly thing to ask.

[ulternnpc]

Ulsai~!

No worries, no questions are too silly to ask since you never know until you ask!

Anyway, considering this isn't a strict game like other places--in case of the PMD, OCs are absolutely fine! If you want the protagonist/character to show up in human form or in their Pokemon form that's completely up to you.

Also any character you plan to play they do not have to be plot important characters or even shown to have a line of dialogue in a game to be played here.

If there's anymore questions you'd like to ask feel free to let us know!