pagans is a supernatural game set in new york city that caters to all kinds of creatures, beings, and deities. the sky (or the underworld) is the limit! if you are interested in joining us but are unsure about who or what to bring, you can visit the dropbox for inspiration, or post in pbads or our sl community, talismanic. the rest of the community will gladly help you brainstorm an idea!

the pagans universein the pagans universe, the supernatural community and the non-supernatural community live side-by-side in relative harmony. the existence of supernatural beings is common knowledge, although different beings can choose to be more or less open with their true identities. some supernatural societies choose to be more or less integrated in human society, and some more violent supernatural communities have been driven underground as a threat to the peace, while some beings capitalize on their abilities by providing services to the non-supernatural community.

no beings are all-powerful in the pagans universe. more information on this can be found on our beings page, which has an outline of some (but not all) of the types of supernatural beings in-game. please take a look before joining!

due to the nature of this game's setting, creativity is the name of the game. is your vampire going to go on a feeding rampage? are the fae going to cause trouble around the city? do you want to implement a community-wide event or storyline? if you come up with an idea that could affect other characters, please contact us and we will do our best to help you in implementing said idea. because we're playing fast and loose with reality, some of the usual laws of physics/biology/etc. may not apply. if you're unsure about anything, please ask the mods for assistance.

we want this game to be a welcoming, fun place for everyone with a heavy emphasis on plotting and writing. please include new and old characters in as much as possible. don't cause unnecessary drama—this includes but is not limited to crossing the ic/ooc line, swerving out of your lane, and godmodding.

any abuse toward other members or toward the moderators will not be tolerated and will result in your character's prompt removal. we heavily encourage everyone to ask the mods for assistance if there is yet unresolved conflict between players. we will do our best to mediate. we want everyone to grow and develop their characters; our goal is to provide a thriving environment which prospers on kindness. we encourage members to have their comments set to "friends only" to limit their interactions to members (and friends.)

we do not support the use of any outside apps. if we discover that you are using outside apps, especially to bully or ostracize other members, you will be removed. please bear in mind that while we have limited control over what members are doing outside of insanejournal and no desire to micromanage you, we will not tolerate bullying on any platform.

use the dropbox respectfully. anonymous, disrespectful, or aggressive comments will be deleted from the dropbox without response. we're open to feedback and discussion when handled in a polite and mature manner. when in doubt, just ask nicely!

trigger warnings and sensitive content we don't consider pagans to be a dark community, but dark and potentially triggering content will come up in character bios, narratives, and other forms. we expect that our writers handle this content maturely and respectfully: that means tagging all content appropriately, keeping it behind a cut-tag (and out of public spaces like ffas, pbads, etc.) and doing thorough research into whatever topic you choose to write about. if you notice any triggering or sensitive content not properly labelled, please contact the mods and let us know, and we'll make sure the writer in question takes care of it.

accepted types of characterspagans is, first and foremost, a community for characters based on mythology and folklore. we accept all types of traditional supernatural beings as well as original takes on characters from folk tales, fairy tales, and classic stories. we would accept a character based on robin hood, for example, but we want you to put your own spin on the story when possible.

since this is not a multifandom community, we do not accept characters lifted straight from contemporary media. you're more than welcome to bring a witch who can control the weather, but she cannot be an etherealki from the shadow and bone universe. in general, we discourage relying heavily on any contemporary film, tv, or books as inspiration for your characters. if we feel like your character is erring too close to fandom, we will ask you to make changes to your bio before considering you for acceptance.

picking a pbdue to the supernatural nature of the game, pbs do not need to adhere to the usual 5-year rule. however, if you are unsure about whether or not your choice's age will be questioned, please drop us a comment.

diversity and representation when it comes to race and ethnicity, given that most ancient cultures existed before the development of the modern concept of race, and that rising and falling empires meant borders were changing constantly and migration and diasporas were frequent, we do not require a pb's modern nationalities or ethnicities to line up exactly with a character's historical country of origin. for instance, consider a non-indiginous latinx pb: if we limited their use to only their modern ethnicity, we would be saying that no one could use that pb for a character that existed before the spanish occupation of south america, since the non-indiginous latinx population was a result of that moment in history. we don't want to limit people's use of poc faces in any way.

what we do expect is writers using pbs with diverse ethnic backgrounds when writing a character from an ethnically diverse region, and writers being respectful and thoughtful when you select a pb and a backstory for your character. we will not allow whitewashing, but we will also not police the color of any poc's skin or whether someone is or is not "white passing." if you're wondering whether your pb choice or lore choice is appropriate, you can always ask the mods.

steps to apply

• character journals can be ic or ooc, as long as there are no underscores or numbers.
• please have two backdated posts: one in character and one out of character. your ooc post must have comments screened.
• your ooc post should have, at minimum, the following: the character's full name, species (if applicable—more information can be found on our beings page), age (or perceived age), and a brief history or summary of said character. this can be expanded upon before or after being added to the game. for bio coding resources, check out pro and compiles!

if your application has been deleted, you have not been accepted to the community. the mods reserve the right to do so without further explanation.

overrides we do not allow overrides. if you want to use a taken pb, please wait until they've been removed.

multiple characters/character cap our current character cap is 3 per writer, within reason. please ensure you're able to maintain activity with each character before bringing in someone new. members with multiple characters will be required to disclose this information to the mods. if we discover that someone has broken the 3 character cap, brought in multiple characters without disclosing them to the mods, or if we find that someone is using multiple characters to bully or blur lines, we will remove all of that person's characters without warning. furthermore, if a writer can't consistently demonstrate activity with their existing characters, additonal characters will not be approved.

being caps/freezes we strive to keep around a 2:1 ratio of other beings:deities in the comm. deities are popular characters to play, and while they'll always be welcome and celebrated here, we also know those roles come with a lot of established lines, and we think the ratio helps build a more diverse community of beings. in order to keep this ratio, we have a standing deity freeze on the last week of every month, where applications for deities will be closed. occasionally, if we see this ratio getting skewed in the wrong direction either way by 10 or more members, we'll instate longer freezes on how many deities (or other beings) can apply. we reserve the right to do this with any type of being if we feel like the balance is off.

myth, lore, and canon we keep our game lore high-level to encourage creativity here, and in that vein, we also encourage our writers to deviate from myth as needed. folk legends, mythology, etc. rarely have a source of truth, and there are different versions of most stories, but beyond that, you also have creative license to change what you like about those myths and legends to suit your vision for your character! we just ask that you outline any details in your character's bio clearly, especially deviations that would impact others characters, and ask you to reach out to any members it may impact as well to collaborate.

a note on sls (tw: mention of incest) as of march 11, 2023, we will no longer be allowing new romantic relationships between blood relatives within the comm, even if they were part of mythological canon. existing sls will not be impacted by this rule, but if writers are interested in writing a romantic relationship between two canonically related characters, you'll need to tweak your character's parentage or origin story to eliminate any blood relations and comment the dropbox or members post with documentation in order for your sl to be approved.

intros intros should be posted within 72 hours of acceptance and the majority of comments should be replied to within three days' time. failure to intro or reply to comments on one's intro will result in removal.

updating the minimum update requirement is two posts per month, but we encourage writers to go above and beyond this. all updates must be something substantial—this includes, but is not limited to: narratives, threads with more than two replies, coded interactive posts (see pro for help), and specified ffas/activity posts. single images, questions, or placeholders are not allowed. we strongly encourage community engagement over superficial posts.

ooc plot posts can be counted toward one's activity on a case-by-case basis. please leave a comment in the members post for mod approval before submitting these as an activity.

we require at least 48 hours time between updates to encourage activity throughout the month. if you think you need any accommodation or have any questions, please ask the mods.

to count as an activity, updates must be visible to the entire community and must not be backdated, i.e. visible on the friends page.

community engagement updating is the minimum activity requirement here. it's also vital to be engaged with the community by commenting intros, other members' updates, ffas, and/or pbads and talismanic posts. we don't expect everyone to be around all the time, and we know some characters can be more shy or reserved, but to prevent dead weight, if we don't see fairly consistent activity from you through the month, you will be eligible for removal.

tracking activity

• if you are added before the last 7 days of the month, you are required to turn in one form of activity in addition to your intro.
• if you are added during the last 7 days of the month, your intro will count as your single update.
• all other members should turn in two forms of activity every month.

all activity should be linked to the activity check post by 9pm est on the last day of the month. generally speaking, we keep track of intros on our own. you are welcome to link them if you notice we have missed yours. failure to submit activity links will result in removal: you'll be welcome to reapply, but it's every member's responsibility to submit their activity links by end of month.

extensions and hiatuses extensions and hiatuses will be granted on a case-by-case basis. hiatus requests must include an end date. extensions will be for 1 week past the due date by default unless mod approval has been obtained for another duration, and you cannot request extensions two months in a row unless you've received mod approval. requests for both should be left in the members post.

removals activity removals will be done at the end of the month, and the mods reserve the right to occasionally run random friends lists checks or activity checks. if your friends list is more than 2 weeks out of date, you may be removed.

pb changes current members are allowed a maximum of 3 pb changes, including if you return to a previously used pb.