- What should I know before I create my character?
Answer: You should at least familiarize yourself with the
four focuses, as you will have to choose one when creating your character, and this choice will be permanent. You should also read our starting guides and refer to our guidelines and policies, all of which are posted on the
About page.
- What is a focus?
Answer: A focus is a "path" in the city, which will dictate which arts you can learn, and so your focus will have a large impact on the development of your character. There are currently four focuses: Dreamseer, Soulmaster, Fatesender, and Gatekeeper. A description of each focus, as well as a list of arts, is available on the
About :: The Four Focuses page.
- Can I play a dragon, dormouse, Ewok, or some other animal or mythical beast of my choosing?
Answer: No. Only people from Cloudsbreak can achieve the Awakening. This does not extend to mythical creatures or other animals.
- Can I play a child character?
Answer: To achieve the Awakening, and to subsequently return to the dreamstate, requires mental discipline, intentionality, conscious thought, and maturity. It is feasible to think that a reasonably gifted child might achieve the Awakening, but certainly not a toddler or infant.
You may play a child character accordingly, but you should be aware that if you choose to play a child character, you may face unique challenges, stumbling blocks, and biases from other characters in the dreamcity.
- What is "Cloudsbreak?"
Answer: The game is set in a dream world where the City of Underlight exists, while Cloudsbreak is the name of the waking world where all our characters live, work, and play while they are not Dreaming.
Cloudsbreak is not to be confused with the "real world." There is no United States, Canada, Europe and so on in Cloudsbreak. Rather, it is an imaginary world set in another universe, where there are no computers, cars, or other implements of technology and industry. References to Cloudsbreak should not mirror our real-life world, and should not be used to make thinly veiled OOC comments.
- What is the "Awakening?"
Answer: The Awakening is one's initial attainment of the dreamstate. There are a number of activities, situations, and circumstances by which a person in Cloudsbreak might Awaken to the dreamcity, but this is often a result of intense meditation and mental practice.
- Alright, I've created my character and just started playing. What should I do next?
Answer: The first thing you should do is write a description of your character. (By default, you can modify your character avatar by pressing 'A' in the game.) You should also customize the appearance of your avatar, choosing colors that you feel will best fit the persona you've created. Finally, set out into the City of Dreams and introduce yourself to the characters you encounter in Threshold! If you tell them you are Newly Awakened, they will help acclimate you to the dream.
- How do I meet other players?
Answer: Dreamers often gather in the Threshold, Gateway to the city, as well as the houses that they belong to. The Sense Dreamers art will tell you where the most people are congregated at any given time, or you may find people by simply walking around the game until you meet some. Once you've made some friends in the game, you can locate them with the art of Locate Dreamer.
- What is a dreamer?
Answer: A dreamer is simply someone who has achieved the Awakening. Everyone in Underlight is called a dreamer.
- What if I really need to break character to ask a question?
Answer: Breaking character is highly discouraged, and you should never engage in unwanted out-of-character (OOC) conversation with another player. However, in the rare event that you and another player find it necessary to go OOC, this should be done only in whispers, and all OOC text should be clearly marked off within ((doubled parentheses)).
- What do the symbols on characters' chests mean?
Answer: The symbols indicate either the sphere that a dreamer has attained, or the house that a dreamer belongs to.
Sphere crests are composed of straight bars on a plain, solid (sometimes colored) background. An unsphered dreamer has one bar, and each additional bar on a sphere crest indicates one additional sphere.
A house crest displays the emblem of the house to which a dreamer belongs, and comes in different color combinations, representing a dreamer's house rank: a white and blue crest indicates an initiate of a house, a red and blue crest indicates a guardian, and a black and blue crest marks a house ruler. Additionally, each house has a GM guide called a Seneschal, who has a red and black house crest.
- What are spheres and orbits?
Answer: As your character gains experience in the game, you will achieve higher orbits, which are Underlight's equivalent of character levels. Every ten orbits is called a sphere. In order to achieve a higher sphere, you must seek out a teacher who can grant spheres, and perform some task or feat.
- Where can I get items in the dream?
Answer: There are item generators called "essence fonts" all over the city. Different essence fonts have different degrees of power; some give higher quality items than others.
- What is an essence font?
Answer: Essence fonts are spawning points where items appear in the game at regular intervals.
- I dropped an item and another player picked it up. Is there anyway I can get it back?
Answer: You will need to speak with the character who picked it up, and resolve the matter in-character. We will not interfere unless your item was somehow stolen in an out-of-character fashion.
- Can I die in the city?
Answer: Yes. You can die if someone evokes Dreamstrike on you while you are a soulsphere.
- What is a soulsphere?
Answer: Every dreamer has an "avatar" that looks like a body and serves as a protective shell for their soul in the dream. If your elemental Dreamsoul force reaches zero, you will be collapsed, meaning that your avatar dissipates and you will float around as a soulsphere until you find a sanctuary or another dreamer to restore you. While in soulsphere form, you will be unable to evoke arts or manipulate items, and your exposed soul will be particularly vulnerable to harm.
- If I am dreamstruck, can my character be brought back to life?
Answer: No. Dreamstrike is irreversible. Once you are Dreamstruck, your character is gone forever.
- How can I learn dreamstrike?
Answer: You must be a Ruler of a house to learn Dreamstrike. The art can only be taught by a Dreamstrike Master, who will be marked with a red halo.
- How can I tell if someone has the art of dreamstrike?
Answer: Dreamers with the art of Dreamstrike have a red circle around their sphere crests.
- What is a nightmare?
Answer: A nightmare is a non-player character (NPC) monster. Defeating a nightmare gives you experience points, and is one of the primary means of advancement in Underlight.
- What is a Dark Mare?
Answer: A Dark Mare is a powerful mare that is controlled by a Game Master.
- Can I have a Dark Mare account?
Answer: Dark Mares are controlled by Game Masters only.
- Can I have children in the dream?
Answer: No. The game setting is a realm of dreams. Procreation is a physical act that requires the exchange of genetic material. This is not possible in the dreamstate, as the avatar is not a real body, but rather a mentally projected shell that protects a dreamer's soul in the dreamstate.
- What is "trancing?"
Answer: "Trancing" is a term that is often used to indicate that a dreamer is "away from keyboard." This kind of thinly veiled reference to an out-of-character state or activity is highly discouraged. There are a number of creative ways to show that your character is preoccupied or unavailable with the use of emotes, and we encourage you to come up with unique ways to portray this.
- I am being harassed in the game. What do I do?
Answer: Please use the "cheat report" function, which is in the chat window, and send in a detailed report as soon as possible. It is important to send your report quickly so we can resolve the issue as soon as possible.
- Someone has come to me telling me they are a GM and are requesting free arts/plateaus. What should I do?
Answer: Do not comply with their request, and please submit a cheat report describing the incident right away.
- Someone has come to me and told me they are a GM asking for my password. What should I do?
Answer: A GM will never ask for your password in game. Please submit a cheat report describing any such incident right away, and do not comply with their request.
- I have a great roleplaying idea! What should I do?
Answer: Please share your ideas with us by submitting a report though the "roleplaying report" option in your chat window, or by e-mailing
roleplaying@shadesoftruth.net.
- Can I use e-mail or instant messengers (Yahoo!, MSN, etc.) to hold a conversation, and then consider parts of that conversation to be in-character?
Answer: No. All in-character conversations should take place in the game. Using OOC means to communicate in-character information is forbidden, and is a violation of our cheating policy.
- Is there any way I can leave a note or message for a player who is not in the game?
Answer: There is no in-game mail system. However, if you need to leave a message for a player (whether IC or OOC), please feel free to use our
forums to do so.
- What if I like to cuss?
Answer: While adult language is allowed to some extent in the game, excessive profanity in public areas of the game will not be tolerated and could result in sanctions levied by the GM team.
- I have a game suggestion. Do you actually consider these?
Answer: The game development team loves suggestions and reads every one of them. Some are implemented, others not, but your suggestions are always heard and read. Please refer to our
contacts page for information about where to send your specific suggestions.
- I love your game and would like to contribute. What can I do?
Answer: The greatest contribution you can make is to play the game and add to its story with your thoughtful and consistent roleplaying. You can also help the game grow by telling your friends about Underlight and encouraging them to play!
Donations are always welcome as well, and help offset the cost of maintaining the server and its connection to the internet. However, this is totally up to each player and is not a requirement to play.
- How can I donate to the Shades of Truth project?
Answer: Donations can be made via paypal to Garlmad123@gmail.com. If you have specific questions about donating, please feel free to contact us at
support@shadesoftruth.net.
- Who are the Game Masters?
Answer: The Game Masters are all former players who wish for this game to continue to thrive and grow. They work on a voluntary basis and receive no salary. Their identities will not be made public, and we appreciate not being pressed on this matter.
- How can I become a Game Master?
Answer: At this time, we are not accepting applications to join the team. As positions become available, they will be posted on the forums with instructions on how to apply.
- What if I have a question that isn't listed here?
Answer: Please feel free to post a message on our forums. We have an active and helpful player base that would love to answer your questions, and the GM team also actively reads and responds to forum postings. If you want to contact the GM team directly with a question, see the
contacts page for the appropriate e-mail address.
