Info refers to the Short Info Fields and the Long Info Fields in the CDB. A list of all the CDB fields, as well as more information about each field, can be viewed by typing +HELP CDB FIELDS. The goal of this stage is to ensure that all applicable Short and Long Info Fields are filled out.
For most characters, much of this information is pre-determined, though there are some fields that need to be filled out in this room. Players need to set the Short Info Fields of Eyes, Hair, Height, ShortDesc and Weight and the Long Info Fields of History and Persona. Additionally, players need to set at least one Event (relating to their entry into IC play), they need to set a private Note detailing some goals for their character (a note is also mandatory if you have the Secret: Major or Secret: Minor flaw) and they will need at least some Relations.
Eyes is your character’s eye-colour. Hair is your character’s hair-colour and hair-style. Height is your character’s height. Weight is your character’s weight. ShortDesc is a brief (max 300 characters) description of your character, shown among other things by +glance (see +HELP +GLANCE).
Regarding Height and Weight, keep in mind that they need to be reasonable in relation to each other and in relation to your STATS. We also ask that you do not set your height to higher than 6’1” (185 cm) or 6’2” (188 cm) for a male character or 5’7” (170 cm) or 5’8” (173 cm) for a female character unless your character is from a house known for tall individuals or your character is a tier III, II or I. Finally, the Height and Weight you select should represent the Height and Weight of your character as an adult.
The short info fields cannot be changed once you leave the CharGen. To change or set these fields out of CharGen, you need to use +jobs (see +HELP JOBS) to submit any proposed changes, using UPDATE as the item type.
Events, Notes and Relations are considered part of the Long Info Fields but are described in detail in their own sections.
History is a publicly viewable field that summarises what is publicly known about your character’s past before he or she came into play as well as what has happened to the character after that point.
Persona is a publicly viewable field that describes your character’s persona.
The Long Info Fields can be changed after CharGen, allowing you to update them when necessary.
An Event is a diary-like entry for an important occasion in your character’s past. It is recommended that you set Events for important events in your background and at least one Event is required: an entry that deals with your character’s entry into play. For example, if you start play with your character’s arrival in a new area, you should create an Event for this occasion.
Events consist of two different fields, Status and Info. Status can be Public or Private, where Public events can be seen by other players, and Info is a free-text description of the event.
Notes are used to record both IC and OOC information about a character. Notes are occasionally used by Staff to leave information for a future player.
A private Note detailing a character’s goals is required, in order to promote the creation of characters with a stronger focus and to motivate players to pursue such goals.
A Note with more in-depth information than what is put into the Justify is required for characters with the Secret: Minor or Secret: Major Flaw.
Related information can be grouped together in a single Note and presented in bullet-point form. Some commonly used Notes are:
Notes consist of three different fields, Title, Status and Info. Title is the title of the Note, Status can be Public or Private, where Public events can be seen by other players, and Info is a free-text description.
You should set Relations for all characters that your character has a significant connection to. Relations can be changed (and added) after CharGen as well, allowing you to update them when necessary.
Relations consist of several different fields: Status, Type, Kind and Info.
Status can be Public or Private, where Public Relations can be viewed by other players. In most cases, you will probably only need Public Relations to other characters. But sometimes the public perception of a Relation may not be the truth, and then you might also need a Private Relation to a character. There might also be occasions where it is not known that your character has a Relation to another character, and then you might just need a Private Relation.
Type can be Parent, Sibling, Spouse, Lover, Child, Relative, Acquaintance, or Stranger. The Type describes what the other character is to your character, not what your character is to the other character. So, if you enter a Relation for your character’s mother, you put the Type as Parent, not as Child.
Kind can be Intimate, Friend, Admirer, Ally, Supporter, Neutral, Opponent, Detractor, Adversary, or Enemy. The Kind describes how your character views another character, not how the other character views your character. Below is a listing, sorted roughly in order of how close and/or positive the relation is, that attempts to clarify what each Kind encompasses:
Info, finally, is a free-text description of the Relation. This is the field that determines whether a Relation is necessary. If you have nothing more to write here than just restating what the connection between your character and another character is, then you do not need to set a Relation. For example, a Relation that simply says that ‘character B is character A’s brother’ is not necessary. However, if your character hates his brother, then you should describe that here. The Info should describe the Relation from your character’s point of view, expressing your character’s subjective feelings about the other character. It should not, as far as is possible, define the personality and opinions of the other characters.