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<center>{{Navbox New Player Guides}}</center>
<center>{{Navbox New Player Guides}}</center>
=Character Creation=
'''[[Background summary| The bare minimum reading one may require before reading this page is the lore starter guide, found in the navbox above or by clicking this sentence!]]'''


If you’re on this page, you’re likely looking for help with character creation. This is simple due to the freedoms given to players - but, lore can be a lot to take in! This page details what exactly you should focus on before delving into specifics, so you aren’t overwhelmed with what may seem like an astronomical lore repository at first glance.  
'''If you're new to Space Station 13, check out [[Getting Started]].'''


Before we begin, the most important thing to consider is the rules. Do not attempt to circumvent these, and, when in doubt, always feel free to ask admin/mod staff and lore developers if a character is reasonable and lore-compliant. '''[https://aurorastation.org/rules.html The rules can be found in this very long and obvious bold and blue highlighted sentence so you can’t miss it.]'''
'''If you need a quick guide to the setting, check out [[New Player Lore Guide]].'''


=Mechanics of Character Creation=
'''Also, [https://aurorastation.org/rules.html read the rules] before you start playing.'''
This section is dedicated to the barebones mechanics of character setup, to help along confused players who are unfamiliar with Space Station 13 or roleplaying games in general. If you are familiar with SS13, it is suggested to skip this section.


The mechanics of character setup are simple. By pressing the "Character Setup" button in the lobby you're able to access your character list and alter the traits of up to thirty characters at a time.  
Welcome to Aurorastation! If you're on this page, you've likely searched up a character creation guide on this wiki or been directed here by the background summary. Don't feel too intimidated by the amount of lore text; once you start playing, the setting will become a lot more digestible.


You are the only person with access to your characters and it is tied to your BYOND ckey, or username/account details. When issues occur regarding missing characters, contact staff as soon as you can!
This guide is going to teach you not only how to create a new character mechanically, but also flesh out their backstory, equip them with some personal items, and prepare them for their occupation.


You are freely able to delete any character you so please, though if you find yourself involved in canonical incidents, staff - and especially other players - would prefer you notify them first before doing this.
==Character Setup==
To start out, click the <code>Character Setup</code> button on the title screen. You'll be taken to a screen that looks a little bit like this:


Character setup is split into various lists, buttons and fields that indicate details about that character. The "Writing your Character" section details what you need to know about the specifics of these fields.
<center>[[File:Character setup.png|400px]]</center>


=Writing your Character=
Let's go through the fields one at a time.
This section is dedicated to the roleplaying aspect of creating your character.
===General===
==Getting Started : What is Aurora lore?==


Aurora lore is a hinging point of the server in that it is the setting which ties everything together. It is very important to stay up-to-date with lore that relates to your character, and with the galaxy at large - this is because you are playing a character whose story is told through it. Putting yourself in the shoes of a character grows far easier the more you know about their background, so we will cover the background first.
* '''Name:''' Self-explanatory. Remember that depending on your origin, there is an expectation your character will have a name and appearance consistent with certain real-life cultural groups.
* '''Sex and pronouns:''' Your biological sex affects whether your character sprite is the "male" model or "female" model. Your pronouns affect what pronouns are used in your examine text. You can make your sex and pronouns differ if you choose to make your character transgender or nonbinary. Some species, like [[Skrell]] and [[Vaurca]], do not have binary sexes in-game.
* '''Age:''' Depending on your age, this can affect what occupations are available to your character.
* '''Height:''' Listed in centimeters, this will show up on your examination text as being small, average height, or tall for your species.
* '''Floating chat color:''' This affects what the pop-up text above your head will look like when you say something or make an audible emote.


==Origins - Citizenship, Language and Religion==
* '''[[Languages]]:''' All ship characters must speak Tau Ceti Basic, the official language of the [[Republic of Biesel]]. Depending on your character's background, they can speak other languages; [[Sol Alliance]] citizens will speak Sol Common, [[Coalition of Colonies]] citizens will speak Freespeak, and those originating from the [[Republic of Elyra]] will speak Elyran Standard. Tradeband is used in various places around the Spur.


Like any roleplaying game, an easy starting point is the origins of a character. The specifics of these origins are judged by a solemn factor mechanically : citizenship. Seeing as your character must be on the station legally (if they were made from character setup menus,) there is no way you can be here without it. While there are resources on acquiring citizenship already on this wiki, we will be focusing on characters who were born in a given area for simplicity’s sake in this guide.
* '''Body:''' This is where you can customize your species (you can only change your species if you have a whitelist for said species), your blood type, your skin color, any disabilities your character has, or whether or not your character has amputated limbs, prosthetic limbs, or mechanical organs.
* '''Hair, facial, gradient:''' Here, you can change the style and color of your character's hair or facial hair. You can also add color gradients, if your character has dyed their hair.
* '''Body color preset:''' This is a preset you can use to change the tone of your character's skin. A dark preset will make the skintone darker in color, a warm preset will add red undertones to the skin, and a cold preset will make your character look pale and washed-out.
* '''Body markings:''' You can add tattoos, scars, bandages, and other assorted body features to your character here. Once one is added, you can edit the color.


The “home” location of your character can mean any number of things, from their financial status, to their beliefs and more. The easiest thing to do is to adopt the beliefs and mannerisms of any given area in the lore and attach them to your character. Modern culture has largely faded or been replaced or is not even mentioned in Aurora lore - in fact, Earth is no longer even a major plot point. This leads to the simpler backgrounds being unrelated to Sol as a system entirely - in fact, our setting is based from a Republic separate from the home Alliance!
* '''Equipment:''' All of these are fairly self-explanatory; here, you can customize what your character's underclothes look like (underwear can be toggled in the <code>Object</code> tab, under <code>Toggle Underwear</code>), edit their backpack, change what PDA they use, and what radio they use.


When considering where you’ve started, keep in mind the following : The [[Republic of Biesel]] is completely surrounded by the [[Sol Alliance]], and then open frontier. Safe travel across longer distances is less safe and obviously longer. The specifics of how long your character has travelled can be deduced simply : use the [[Interstellar Travel]] Page, base your speed off of that, and count the squares on the starmap between you and your destination.
* '''Records:''' See [[Character Creation#Character records|Character Records]].


With that out of the way, there are a myriad of different choices to be had here. This guide will focus on the Republic of Biesel as the point of interest for now.
* '''Signature:''' This is what your signature will look like whenever you sign a piece of paper. To sign something, use a pen on paper and insert <code>[sign]</code>.


[[Image:Republicofbieselflag.png|65px]]
Once you've edited all these fields, hit <code>Save Slot</code> to save your character!
'''[[Republic of Biesel]]'''


The Republic of Biesel is a federal republic exercising official authority over the Tau Ceti system and not much else. However, it is built upon a fabulous concentration of phoron, occupied by the NanoTrasen corporation - something that has led to it becoming the wealthiest system in Human space and beyond.
===Origin===


This is ultimately the '''default''' of the setting. Players using character backgrounds from here will find seamless integration in the lore easy thanks to its simplicity. NanoTrasen rules all here, and simply living here implies you work for some form of megacorporation.  
This is the part of character creation where you can choose where your character comes from, their accent, and their various unseen modifiers.


===Different faction expectations===
'''Culture''' and '''Origin''' refers to the birthplace of your character. It is meant to determine your '''Accent''', which will show up in-game whenever your character speaks. The typical culture for a first character on the server is usually [[Biesel]], though you are perfectly free to make a character from another planet. [[Template:Navbox Human Lore|Remember to brush up on their lore first]]!
Different factions have different expectations. For example, Unathi are tied into Dominia at every level of its society, meaning it makes very little sense to play a Dominian who does not know what a Unathi is. In this regard, it can only be stressed that the more you know, the easier you can find your character's place.


[[Languages]] play a major part in Aurora's setting, splitting entire populations by merely hearing the words others speak. Details on each language can be found ingame, but the wiki resource can be found at the [[Languages]] page.
Once you select a culture, you may receive a blurb about small mechanical benefits or detriments that affect this origin. It can be anything from characters from [[Mictlan]] not being affected by spicy food, or characters from [[Assunzione]] having messages pop up in their chat about being afraid of the dark. Another blurb that you should pay attention to is the restrictions on origins; characters from certain planets may be restricted to the names and and appearances of real-life cultural and ethnic groups.


===So where do I go?===
A brief note: Characters from [[Mictlan]], [[Konyang]], and [[Port Antillia]] must select their Culture as Solarian.
Every species has a navbox dedicated to their own lore, with a main lore navbox being located at the bottom of this page and many others, sometimes at the top. It's hard to get lost on the Aurora wiki.


This is the navigational box, or navbox, for Human lore. It contains important information and by pressing the leftmost names of the factions, you can look into every detail pertaining to them.  
Once you've determined your culture and origin, select your accent. This will prompt a pop-up menu; typically, the accent will match your origin, but sometimes there are variant accents that indicate more about your character.
{{Navbox Human Lore}}
==Moving on==
The faction a character chooses is far from the defining trait of a character. Characters are, when in character, just people after all. The next sections proceed onto details elaborating on how you can use this information - or totally disregard it, should you wish.


==Character traits - Flavor text, Records==
Your '''Economic Status''' affects how many credits your character will have in their in-game bank account. This isn't a definitive statement on the funds your character has, and can be flavored as their chequing account. Your origin, species, and occupation will also affect your credits.


This is partly where the freedom of Aurora character creation shines the most.  
'''Citizenship''' determines where your character holds citizenship and primarily lives. It does not have to tie into your origin, though it is recommended you peruse the [[Guide to Citizenship]] in order to determine if your character's background suits their citizenship.


Flavor text is an editable text attached to your character that is presented to '''everyone''' who examines your character in-game. Theoretically, literally anything can go in this field, within the boundaries of the rules. These cover every body part - but we won't go into that much detail.
Selecting your '''Religion''' is self-explanatory; some origins may lock you into a certain religion, owing to that religion's prominence on a planet. The [[Empire of Dominia]] and [[Assunzione]] are examples.


This is often a point which players use to expand upon their origins. For example,
With that all selected, hit <code>Save Slot</code> again and move on to...


Before you stands an Eridanian, (goes on with flavortext)
===Occupation===


is a very common way to start a flavor text. If your character is part of a niche or perhaps unknown demographic, this much can be expanded upon as well, such as -
{{Guides}}


This individual carries an exotic, unfamiliar demeanor and appearance. (goes on with flavortext)
This is where you select your character's '''Faction''', the corporation they work for, and their job. Generally, '''it is expected that your character stick to the job they start out with'''; no job-hopping! For them to switch professions requires a strong roleplay reason.


Everyone writes flavor text differently. Some individuals go for very wordy and in-depth text to describe their character's precise details, while others may put only a sentence.
The jobs available to your character will be restricted by their faction. Here is a list of departments and what factions they can be part of:


The only absolute is that flavor text is not a requirement. It is heavily encouraged to write one, however, because hammering out the appearance of your character is the first step toward better connecting with them.
* '''Command and Command Support:''' [[Guide to Command|Command roles]] and [[Bridge Crewman|Bridge Crewmen]] can only be employed by the [[Stellar Corporate Conglomerate]]. [[Corporate Liaison|Consular Officers]] are exclusively independent, given they represent a nation-state, and [[Corporate Liaison|Corporate Liaisons]] can be the corporation they represent.
* '''Security:''' [[PMCG]], [[Idris Incorporated]], [[Zavodskoi Interstellar]]
* '''Engineering:''' [[Hephaestus Industries]], [[Zavodskoi Interstellar]]
* '''Medical:''' [[NanoTrasen]], [[PMCG]], [[Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals]]
* '''Science:''' [[NanoTrasen]], [[Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals]], [[Zavodskoi Interstellar]]
* '''Operations:''' [[Hephaestus Industries]], [[Orion Express]]
* '''Service:''' [[NanoTrasen]], [[Idris Incorporated]], [[Orion Express]]
* '''Civilian:''' [[Assistant|Assistants]] and [[Corporate Reporter|Corporate Reporters]] can be employed with any corporation. Corporate reporters, as well as [[Chaplain|Chaplains]], can also be independent.


For faction-specific appearances, refer to faction pages. There is ''always'' a section detailing what the populace may look like to help you along.
You can adjust the likelihood of you rolling a certain job by setting the <code>[NEVER]</code> job selector to <code>[High]</code>.
 
Once you're done choosing a job and a faction, hit <code>Save Slot</code> again.
 
==== Jobs to start out as ====
 
If you're new to SS13, good jobs to start out with are [[Janitor]], [[Hangar Technician]], and [[Assistant]]. Being a janitor means you have an excuse to explore the ship and understand its layout, and you have a job with low stakes. A hangar technician has a bit more responsibility than a janitor, and is a good place to get more used to more complex mechanics, such as consoles, autolathes, and bounties. An assistant has next to no expectations at all, and can simply go around the ship asking for ways to be helpful.
 
It is suggested you play a few rounds getting used to the ship before you dip into other departments; Medical and Engineering in particularly are very mechanically intensive, and it's best you know the game before you try them.
 
==== Off-duty crewmembers and passengers ====
 
If you'd like to play your character, but would prefer to roleplay rather than doing the mechanical part of your job, you can set up your character as an off-duty crewmember. In-character, this means your character has simply come up from the residential decks on the Horizon to eat, hang out with their friends, and relax. '''As an Off-Duty Crewmember, you are not permitted to engage in your job's duties unless absolutely necessary.''' This is punishable by administrative action.
 
A passenger is different from an off-duty crewmember in that they are not employed on the Horizon, and they simply purchased a ticket to witness the machinations of the ship. They are not crew, and have no responsibilities. Similarly to an off-duty crewmember, however, '''a Passenger is not allowed to perform the duties of other jobs'''.
 
===Roles===


Creativity is a key component of good writing, and this reflects in flavor text. Your imagination can run wild with how you want your character to appear, no matter how unique or bland they may seem.
In this tab, you're able to select if you want to be picked for antagonist roles when you ready up for a round. Very new players are not permitted to select these to minimize griefing. If you want to turn on your antagonist roles, simply click <code>Yes</code> to put yourself in for selection. '''It is recommended you play a few rounds getting used to the lore and setting before readying as an antagonist.'''


===Records===
===Loadout===


Records are a difficult part of character creation. Many individuals opt to not create character records until they think they enjoy a character enough to bother. However, they are very fulfilling and easy to write once you get a hang of it ; the more you know, the more you can simply pull from lore to justify where your character has been or how they got here.
This is where you can pick items that are placed in your character's inventory when you spawn into a round. By selecting the sections at the top of the screen, you can filter through the various uniforms bearing corporate branding, casual clothes, cosmetics, lunchboxes and drink containers, and even religious paraphernalia.


The concept of records is simple : all employees have them tied into their existence in the setting, telling other players all sorts of things from your character's flaws to your skills.
For some items, you can customize the color, name, and description of the item to give it flavor that is personal to your character. Obviously, be reasonable; your character's hearing aid is probably not a secret listening implant that steals all of the communications of the ship.


There are no official records templates to utilize. You can make your own or look for some in the community yourself - however, none are included here (for now).
Some items are restricted to characters of a certain origin. Some items are restricted to characters of a certain species; for example, a human cannot wear an [[IPC]] antenna.


Some players include OOC notes or external links in their records to create things that can't be created in plain text. This is permitted and in no way frowned upon.
===Global and Other===


'''Only you and server administrators can edit your records!''' If a canonical happening occurs, it's up to you to log it!
The '''Global''' tab is where you can adjust some settings, as well as set up a personal AI personality to spawn in as. The '''Other''' tab is where incident notes from CCIA, the SCC's human resources department, are kept on your character.
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
====Security Records====
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
Security records detail any manner of criminal records, legal incidents or expectations of your character. These are separate from on-station incident logging, which can freely be edited through the "Other" tab in character setup. Do not delete canon incidents that occur on designated canon rounds.


These are accessed by virtually the entire security department, and all of command staff.
==Writing Your Character==
</div></div>
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
====Employment Records====
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
Employment records tell a story very well! With these, you can narrate the locations your character has worked over their life, their skills, qualifications and more. These are most commonly what gets you access to extra permissions ICly, and thus tends to be an issue more often than not. Be reasonable with your character's skillset and history.


These are accessed exclusively by command staff and above.
===Flavor text===
</div></div>
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed">
====Medical Records====
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
Medical records basically list every bit of medical information pertaining to your character.


These are accessed by medical and command staff on request. Some parts of security (CSI, Detective) can access it as well.
Flavor text is an editable text attached to your character that is presented to everyone who examines your character in-game. Theoretically, literally anything can go in this field, within the boundaries of the rules. There are flavor text boxes for every body part, and which part is viewable depends on what the character you examine is wearing. If a character is wearing sunglasses, you won't be able to read their flavor text about their eyes.
</div></div>
==The Loadout and Cosmetics==
The loadout, as selected at the top of the character setup, permits you to dress your character in any way you want. Aurora's loadout selection is rather cluttered, and arguably ''bloated,'' but this is in the better interest of player freedom in character aesthetic. Going into the details of this is utterly hopeless because of the sheer amount of items you can access, much less the fact that it's constantly changing. Go and explore!


An excerpt : The only xenowear accessible to anybody who lacks a whitelist is "Xenowear-Human," which can only be worn by [[Offworlder Humans]].
This is a point which players can use to expand upon their origins. For example:


==Finishing : Your Job and Employer==
A human woman, perhaps in her mid-twenties, standing at roughly 170cm. She has dark skin, curly dark hair tied back in a neat bun, and has a professional, upright demeanor. Her tone is marked with a clear [[Eridani Federation|Eridanian]] accent, though the rougher edge to her words implies that she is reinstated.
The NSS Aurora is a workplace where, not everyone is actually employed. There are options to play unemployed individuals, such as visitors and unaffiliated parties. To wrap up, we'll move on to your job selection.


===Your Job===
Everyone writes flavor text differently. Some go for very descriptive, detailed text to describe their character's appearance and mannerisms, while others may put only a sentence. One good rule of thumb to follow is '''show, don't tell'''. Don't put explicit details about your character's backstory into their flavor text; anything written there should be able to be discerned by looking or listening.
Jobs are the core of SS13 gameplay, and this carried over to Aurora's server gameplay as well. Everyone plays their own role and the character you make with this guide is forced to choose one, should you play as them. There are multiple paths that interest plenty of people : there's well over 30 occupations available that each have extremely fleshed out mechanics and places in their departments. To get a comprehensive selection of what you can play, press the big "Jobs" button below (or the adjacent guides, which contain good info too). If you intend to play an '''external megacorporate contractor,''' the final section of this page details just what you need.
<center>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:New_main_page_guides.png|frameless|upright=1|link=Jobs|alt=|100px]]<br><div style="font-size:142%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#000;>[[Jobs|'''Job Guides''']]</div></li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:New main page generalguides.png|frameless|upright=1|link=Guides|alt=|100px]]<br><div style="font-size:142%; border:none; margin:0; padding:.1em; color:#000;>[[Guides|'''General Guides''']]</div></li>
</center>
==The Other Scary Megacorporations==
While not detailed much in the new play summary or here, there is the ability to play every megacorporation's contractors on the Aurora server. This has the exception of Einstein Engines.


'''The Megacorporations''' are major defining factors to you, if you happen to be one of these contractors. They are listed below, and your expectations can completely change depending on who you're from.
You can also link a reference picture of your character in your flavor text, but be mindful that it should be a short link and be at the beginning of the text, otherwise it will have to be copy-pasted into an Internet browser. This reference should follow the server rules; keep it ''safe for work''.
<center>
[[File:Hephaestuslogo4.png|200px|link=Hephaestus Industries]]
====[[Hephaestus Industries]]====
Hephaestus Industries is the foremost industrial power in the galaxy. Their ability to manufacture the greatest range of products is unparalleled among the megacorporations, solidifying its position - begrudgingly, beneath NanoTrasen.


Hephaestus contractors are known for their free and hardy nature, being mostly individuals sourced from opposition of the Sol Alliance. This has gone so far as to make their primary language ''Freespeak,'' one known for its connection to the rebellious Mars.
Flavor text is not a requirement, but it is heavily encouraged to write one. Hammering out the appearance of your character is the first step toward better connecting with them.  


[[File:II-teal.png|200px|link=Idris Incorporated]]
For faction-specific appearances, refer to faction pages. There is ''always'' a section detailing what the populace may look like to help you along.
====[[Idris Incorporated]]====
Idris Incorporated is the greatest banking conglomerate in the galaxy. Their reach extends as far as NanoTrasen's, despite a rather centralized and shady family administration.  


Idris contractors are usually renowned everyday service personnel, the highest class even. They delve frequently into security contracting as well - their own claim to quality simply being the "Idris expectation."
===Character records===


[[File:ZH-lightpurple.png|200px|link=Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals]]
The most extensive part of character creation is creating records for your character. They describe such things as your character's medical history, their criminal records, and their employment and where they worked or studied.
====[[Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals]]====
Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals is the largest pharmaceutical employer and medical research corporation ever devised. Their coverage of the galaxy is spotty, but they have grown massively in recent years.


Zeng-Hu contractors are very often exactly what they're slated to be. The formalities involved with practicing medicine are extensive (even in the 2400's) and as such Zeng-Hu is known to employ only the best - especially for positions on other megacorporate installations.
Records are not mandatory to have, but assist in your roleplay greatly. Many players opt to not create records until they think they enjoy a character enough to bother. Once you have a good idea of what to write, however, they become much simpler to produce.


[[File:Zavodskoi Interestellar.png|150px|link=Zavodskoi Interstellar]]
There are no official records templates to utilize. The most commonly used templates are through the [https://github.com/Aurorastation/character-records-generator/releases Aurora Character Records generator], a simple fill-in-the-blanks program, and the character records accessed through [https://ps.ss13.net/ ps.ss13.net]. ps.ss13.net is based on Baystation 12's lore, so make sure to edit the dates appropriately!
====[[Zavodskoi Interstellar]]====
Zavodskoi Interstellar is defined as the largest (and, at this point, the only) major arms manufacturer in the known galaxy. Their reach extends to whoever needs weapons at any time - from killing machines to angry looking boots, they sell it all.


Zavodskoi contractors are known to contrast their company's ''edgy'' and intimidating exterior. Politeness and cooperation with employers, and encouraging polite cooperation with others is the name of the game.
Some players include OOC notes or external links in their records to create things that can't be created in plain text. This is permitted and in no way frowned upon.
</center>
 
==Conclusion==
'''Only you and server administrators can edit your records permanently!''' If a canonical happening occurs, it's up to you to log it!
Now that you've reached the end of this guide, you're ready to get a character made and start playing! Enjoy your time on the server and, when in doubt, consult the wiki or ask staff at any time through discord for help!


==Helpful Links==
* '''Security Records:''' Security records detail any manner of criminal records, legal incidents or expectations of your character. These are separate from on-station incident logging, which can freely be edited through the "Other" tab in character setup. Do not delete canon incidents that occur on designated canon rounds. These are accessed by the entire security department, and all of command staff.
These links are helpful for character creation.
* '''Employment Records:''' With these, you can narrate the locations your character has worked over their life, their skills, qualifications and more. These are most commonly what gets you access to extra permissions ICly, and thus tends to be an issue more often than not. Be reasonable with your character's skillset and history. These are accessed exclusively by command staff and above.
* '''Medical Records:''' Medical records basically list every bit of medical information pertaining to your character. These are accessed by medical and command staff on request. Some parts of security, such as the [[Investigator]], can access it as well.


*[[Education]] - Where your character goes to higher education. Mostly for employment records.
==Conclusion==
*[[Guide to Law]] - The general law expectations of the empires, pretty much declaring who is and isn't evil as heck.
Congratulations! You've reached the end of this guide, you're ready to get a character made and start playing! If you have any further questions, you should take a look at the [https://discord.gg/0sYA49zHYGnKWM9p Aurora Discord] or the [https://forums.aurorastation.org/ forums] to search for or ask any questions you might have. Have fun!
*[[Guide to Citizenship]] - Citizenship requirements in case you need to switch citizenships.
*[[Interstellar Travel]] - Ship speeds, specifications and how travel works.
*[[Languages]] - Important languages in the galaxy.
*[[NanoTrasen Occupation Qualifications]] - Resources detailing why you can't be the lunatic you've always wanted to be


{{Navbox Lore}}
{{Navbox Lore}}

Latest revision as of 17:55, 17 October 2023

New Player Section
This is a navbox. Pressing the links below takes you to the respective pages.

This specific navbox is tailored to new player guides and very important pages across the wiki for newcomers.

Character Starters Getting Started · New Player Lore Guide · Character Creation · Jobs
Background Starters Interstellar Travel · The Universe · Bluespace · Technology · SCCV Horizon
Faction Starters Corporations · Main Human Factions
Alien Whitelist Starters Skrell · Synthetics · Tajara · Dionae · Unathi · Vaurca

If you're new to Space Station 13, check out Getting Started.

If you need a quick guide to the setting, check out New Player Lore Guide.

Also, read the rules before you start playing.

Welcome to Aurorastation! If you're on this page, you've likely searched up a character creation guide on this wiki or been directed here by the background summary. Don't feel too intimidated by the amount of lore text; once you start playing, the setting will become a lot more digestible.

This guide is going to teach you not only how to create a new character mechanically, but also flesh out their backstory, equip them with some personal items, and prepare them for their occupation.

Character Setup

To start out, click the Character Setup button on the title screen. You'll be taken to a screen that looks a little bit like this:

Character setup.png

Let's go through the fields one at a time.

General

  • Name: Self-explanatory. Remember that depending on your origin, there is an expectation your character will have a name and appearance consistent with certain real-life cultural groups.
  • Sex and pronouns: Your biological sex affects whether your character sprite is the "male" model or "female" model. Your pronouns affect what pronouns are used in your examine text. You can make your sex and pronouns differ if you choose to make your character transgender or nonbinary. Some species, like Skrell and Vaurca, do not have binary sexes in-game.
  • Age: Depending on your age, this can affect what occupations are available to your character.
  • Height: Listed in centimeters, this will show up on your examination text as being small, average height, or tall for your species.
  • Floating chat color: This affects what the pop-up text above your head will look like when you say something or make an audible emote.
  • Languages: All ship characters must speak Tau Ceti Basic, the official language of the Republic of Biesel. Depending on your character's background, they can speak other languages; Sol Alliance citizens will speak Sol Common, Coalition of Colonies citizens will speak Freespeak, and those originating from the Republic of Elyra will speak Elyran Standard. Tradeband is used in various places around the Spur.
  • Body: This is where you can customize your species (you can only change your species if you have a whitelist for said species), your blood type, your skin color, any disabilities your character has, or whether or not your character has amputated limbs, prosthetic limbs, or mechanical organs.
  • Hair, facial, gradient: Here, you can change the style and color of your character's hair or facial hair. You can also add color gradients, if your character has dyed their hair.
  • Body color preset: This is a preset you can use to change the tone of your character's skin. A dark preset will make the skintone darker in color, a warm preset will add red undertones to the skin, and a cold preset will make your character look pale and washed-out.
  • Body markings: You can add tattoos, scars, bandages, and other assorted body features to your character here. Once one is added, you can edit the color.
  • Equipment: All of these are fairly self-explanatory; here, you can customize what your character's underclothes look like (underwear can be toggled in the Object tab, under Toggle Underwear), edit their backpack, change what PDA they use, and what radio they use.
  • Signature: This is what your signature will look like whenever you sign a piece of paper. To sign something, use a pen on paper and insert [sign].

Once you've edited all these fields, hit Save Slot to save your character!

Origin

This is the part of character creation where you can choose where your character comes from, their accent, and their various unseen modifiers.

Culture and Origin refers to the birthplace of your character. It is meant to determine your Accent, which will show up in-game whenever your character speaks. The typical culture for a first character on the server is usually Biesel, though you are perfectly free to make a character from another planet. Remember to brush up on their lore first!

Once you select a culture, you may receive a blurb about small mechanical benefits or detriments that affect this origin. It can be anything from characters from Mictlan not being affected by spicy food, or characters from Assunzione having messages pop up in their chat about being afraid of the dark. Another blurb that you should pay attention to is the restrictions on origins; characters from certain planets may be restricted to the names and and appearances of real-life cultural and ethnic groups.

A brief note: Characters from Mictlan, Konyang, and Port Antillia must select their Culture as Solarian.

Once you've determined your culture and origin, select your accent. This will prompt a pop-up menu; typically, the accent will match your origin, but sometimes there are variant accents that indicate more about your character.

Your Economic Status affects how many credits your character will have in their in-game bank account. This isn't a definitive statement on the funds your character has, and can be flavored as their chequing account. Your origin, species, and occupation will also affect your credits.

Citizenship determines where your character holds citizenship and primarily lives. It does not have to tie into your origin, though it is recommended you peruse the Guide to Citizenship in order to determine if your character's background suits their citizenship.

Selecting your Religion is self-explanatory; some origins may lock you into a certain religion, owing to that religion's prominence on a planet. The Empire of Dominia and Assunzione are examples.

With that all selected, hit Save Slot again and move on to...

Occupation

Guides of the Aurora
Game Mechanics Getting Started - Guide to Combat - Guide to EVA - Guide to Piloting - Guide to Communication - Corporate Regulations - Stellar Corporate Conglomerate Occupation Qualifications
Command Guide to Command - Guide to Paperwork - Guide to Standard Procedure - Guide to Faxes
Security Guide to Security - Guide to Contraband - Corporate Regulations - Guide to Cadavers
Engineering Guide to Construction - Guide to Advanced Construction - Hacking - Guide to Atmospherics - Supermatter Engine - INDRA Engine - Setting up the Solar Array - Telecommunications - Shields
Medical Guide to Medicine - Guide to Surgery - Guide to Chemistry
Research Guide to Research and Development - Guide to Xenobiology - Guide to Xenobotany - Guide to Xenoarchaeology - Guide to Robotics - Guide to Telescience
Operations Guide to Mining - Guide to Robotics
Civilian Guide to Food - Guide to Drinks - Guide to Hydroponics - Guide to Piloting
Non-human cyborg - AI - Guide to Psionics
Special Mercenary - Ninja - Changeling - Vampire - Raider - Revolutionary - Cultist - Technomancer - Guide to Improvised Weapons - Uplink

This is where you select your character's Faction, the corporation they work for, and their job. Generally, it is expected that your character stick to the job they start out with; no job-hopping! For them to switch professions requires a strong roleplay reason.

The jobs available to your character will be restricted by their faction. Here is a list of departments and what factions they can be part of:

You can adjust the likelihood of you rolling a certain job by setting the [NEVER] job selector to [High].

Once you're done choosing a job and a faction, hit Save Slot again.

Jobs to start out as

If you're new to SS13, good jobs to start out with are Janitor, Hangar Technician, and Assistant. Being a janitor means you have an excuse to explore the ship and understand its layout, and you have a job with low stakes. A hangar technician has a bit more responsibility than a janitor, and is a good place to get more used to more complex mechanics, such as consoles, autolathes, and bounties. An assistant has next to no expectations at all, and can simply go around the ship asking for ways to be helpful.

It is suggested you play a few rounds getting used to the ship before you dip into other departments; Medical and Engineering in particularly are very mechanically intensive, and it's best you know the game before you try them.

Off-duty crewmembers and passengers

If you'd like to play your character, but would prefer to roleplay rather than doing the mechanical part of your job, you can set up your character as an off-duty crewmember. In-character, this means your character has simply come up from the residential decks on the Horizon to eat, hang out with their friends, and relax. As an Off-Duty Crewmember, you are not permitted to engage in your job's duties unless absolutely necessary. This is punishable by administrative action.

A passenger is different from an off-duty crewmember in that they are not employed on the Horizon, and they simply purchased a ticket to witness the machinations of the ship. They are not crew, and have no responsibilities. Similarly to an off-duty crewmember, however, a Passenger is not allowed to perform the duties of other jobs.

Roles

In this tab, you're able to select if you want to be picked for antagonist roles when you ready up for a round. Very new players are not permitted to select these to minimize griefing. If you want to turn on your antagonist roles, simply click Yes to put yourself in for selection. It is recommended you play a few rounds getting used to the lore and setting before readying as an antagonist.

Loadout

This is where you can pick items that are placed in your character's inventory when you spawn into a round. By selecting the sections at the top of the screen, you can filter through the various uniforms bearing corporate branding, casual clothes, cosmetics, lunchboxes and drink containers, and even religious paraphernalia.

For some items, you can customize the color, name, and description of the item to give it flavor that is personal to your character. Obviously, be reasonable; your character's hearing aid is probably not a secret listening implant that steals all of the communications of the ship.

Some items are restricted to characters of a certain origin. Some items are restricted to characters of a certain species; for example, a human cannot wear an IPC antenna.

Global and Other

The Global tab is where you can adjust some settings, as well as set up a personal AI personality to spawn in as. The Other tab is where incident notes from CCIA, the SCC's human resources department, are kept on your character.

Writing Your Character

Flavor text

Flavor text is an editable text attached to your character that is presented to everyone who examines your character in-game. Theoretically, literally anything can go in this field, within the boundaries of the rules. There are flavor text boxes for every body part, and which part is viewable depends on what the character you examine is wearing. If a character is wearing sunglasses, you won't be able to read their flavor text about their eyes.

This is a point which players can use to expand upon their origins. For example: 

A human woman, perhaps in her mid-twenties, standing at roughly 170cm. She has dark skin, curly dark hair tied back in a neat bun, and has a professional, upright demeanor. Her tone is marked with a clear Eridanian accent, though the rougher edge to her words implies that she is reinstated.

Everyone writes flavor text differently. Some go for very descriptive, detailed text to describe their character's appearance and mannerisms, while others may put only a sentence. One good rule of thumb to follow is show, don't tell. Don't put explicit details about your character's backstory into their flavor text; anything written there should be able to be discerned by looking or listening.

You can also link a reference picture of your character in your flavor text, but be mindful that it should be a short link and be at the beginning of the text, otherwise it will have to be copy-pasted into an Internet browser. This reference should follow the server rules; keep it safe for work.

Flavor text is not a requirement, but it is heavily encouraged to write one. Hammering out the appearance of your character is the first step toward better connecting with them.

For faction-specific appearances, refer to faction pages. There is always a section detailing what the populace may look like to help you along.

Character records

The most extensive part of character creation is creating records for your character. They describe such things as your character's medical history, their criminal records, and their employment and where they worked or studied.

Records are not mandatory to have, but assist in your roleplay greatly. Many players opt to not create records until they think they enjoy a character enough to bother. Once you have a good idea of what to write, however, they become much simpler to produce.

There are no official records templates to utilize. The most commonly used templates are through the Aurora Character Records generator, a simple fill-in-the-blanks program, and the character records accessed through ps.ss13.net. ps.ss13.net is based on Baystation 12's lore, so make sure to edit the dates appropriately!

Some players include OOC notes or external links in their records to create things that can't be created in plain text. This is permitted and in no way frowned upon.

Only you and server administrators can edit your records permanently! If a canonical happening occurs, it's up to you to log it!

  • Security Records: Security records detail any manner of criminal records, legal incidents or expectations of your character. These are separate from on-station incident logging, which can freely be edited through the "Other" tab in character setup. Do not delete canon incidents that occur on designated canon rounds. These are accessed by the entire security department, and all of command staff.
  • Employment Records: With these, you can narrate the locations your character has worked over their life, their skills, qualifications and more. These are most commonly what gets you access to extra permissions ICly, and thus tends to be an issue more often than not. Be reasonable with your character's skillset and history. These are accessed exclusively by command staff and above.
  • Medical Records: Medical records basically list every bit of medical information pertaining to your character. These are accessed by medical and command staff on request. Some parts of security, such as the Investigator, can access it as well.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You've reached the end of this guide, you're ready to get a character made and start playing! If you have any further questions, you should take a look at the Aurora Discord or the forums to search for or ask any questions you might have. Have fun!


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Corporations II-teal.pngIdris Incorporated · EinsteinEngines2.pngEinstein Engines · SCC logo.pngStellar Corporate Conglomerate · Nt-logo.jpegNanoTrasen Corporation · ORION SPUR LOGISTICS.pngOrion Express
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