CHARACTER RULES

This section is to help players create characters that fit within Soulmoor in appearance and lore. Please read your race's info in the Lore section, which should give a good baseline from which to draw for appearance, background, age, and alignment.

While alignment is mentioned in a race's info, it's simply there to understand the usual alignment of those within that race based on their typical society and culture. You are generally free to decide what you wish for your character, but it is a good idea to know when you or someone else is an outlier to the norm for that race, as sometimes that can affect RP.

Also, on each race's page, there are some general appearance suggestions and a few requirements to ensure a character played on Soulmoor fits within the lore. Most races have very loose standards, and while many things are listed as "almost always," you are free to step outside of them, though such a character may be considered strange or not full-blooded by members of the same race. However, some races have distinct features that all within the race always have, and these requirements are listed in red in the race's info if it has any such requirements. If you are one of these races and do not meet these requirements, you will be asked to adjust your character to continue to play in Soulmoor. However, you are free to ignore color focused red appearance requirements for a character's undead appearance, so feel free to get creative then.

GENERAL CHARACTER GUIDLINES

You must be one of the races from the Lore section.
You must have a clearly medieval fantasy appearance and understand that several settlements have laws about public indecency.
You cannot have obviously magical effects, auras, or equipment unless you've gained a corresponding magical item with the system or have the ritual ability to create such an effect (see prestidigitation and elemental aura rituals).
You cannot be from or have visited another plane, universe, or period.
You cannot be from or have visited areas outside of those shown on our map.
You cannot have legitimate claims or relations to royalty or divinity.
You cannot have great power, wealth, or abilities from a backstory or generated by things off-sim (you can have connections to places and groups the world over, but cannot have significant pull with them as to wield any of its strength)
You cannot play a literary/historical/copyrighted character.

APPEARANCE GUIDELINES

All player characters must be sentient, LOOK, and ACT at least 18 years old. Any excessively young-looking avatars will be asked to change, regardless of the time present on the sim. (there are some heads, skins, and body shapes that, when alone, are fine, but together bring a questionably underage appearance.)
Any of the “shortstack” races (dwarf, halfling, gnome, goblin, kobold) will be held to an even higher standard of “adult appearance,” due to their size. They must have a clearly adult skin, muscular definition/weight to them, and developed breasts for female-presenting characters. “Femboy” appearance for shortstacks is not allowed. You MAY play a femboy on another, full-sized race, but we ask you to understand that the youthful appearance on a 3 foot tall avatar is just not appropriate.
You cannot have an obscene appearance geared toward some apparent kink (sex happens, we even have stuff for it on the sim, but it's not the focus here. Anything close to realistic and that could be found in the medieval period without the need for modern science or unlisted magic is fine.)
You cannot have an appearance that would fit into any of these types: Anime, Furry, Cartoon, Robot.
You must adhere to any red requirements of your chosen race, if it has any. While undead, you may ignore any appearance color requirements.
You must be within the age range for your chosen race, even when undead (for the exception to this, see the beacon lore and understand it is a much more punishing style of character to play).

GENDER IDENTITY, INTERSEX CHARACTERS, AND FETISHIZED APPEARANCES

Soulmoor is a Medieval Fantasy genre sim intended to provide a place for greater realism, gritty conflict, intrigue, and general hardship in IC life. The Witcher, Lord of the Rings, and Game of Thrones are all excellent examples for the types of characters, observable magic, and general thematic feel we want to foster.

It is also our explicit desire to be a sim which is safe and welcoming to anyone of any gender identity or sexual orientation, including any and all members of the Two-Spirit or LGBTQIA+ Community. Not only do we embrace and respect these communities as real life individuals, and understand all manner of gender expression, we also invite characters of all forms which fit within these spectrums to be present and enjoyed on sim. It is well understood that Second Life can be a vehicle for expression and exposure to characters that are often left behind in other forms of media. Soulmoor is intended as a home for everyone seeking the roleplay environment we aim to provide.

There is no desire whatsoever to police the gender and sexual expression of our players, but this being said, character appearances have a direct impact on the thematic experience of a sim. For the same reason that robots, anime, and furry avatars are not appropriate in Soulmoor, avatars of excessive proportions (outside the standards of playable races) and other highly sexualized/fetishized avatars are not allowed. We will also not permit the appropriation of marginalized communities/identities in order to defend such avatars, as a matter of respect for members of those communities and identities who wish to have a place free of the fetishization of their genuinely held truths.

Examples of this are, but are not limited to:

“Bimbofication” such as extreme/unrealistic proportions of hips/breasts, lips, etc.
Excessively sized genitals of any form, or genitals inappropriate to a character’s race (such as horse/cat/dog genitals on humans, orcs, elves, etc.)
Futanari or other appearances inspired by fetish content.
Excessively young appearances, as covered elsewhere in this guide.

While the vast majority of this is easily identified, there is a certain level of subjectivity necessarily involved. If asked by staff to make adjustments to your avatar based on these standards, understand that it is not a matter of judgment or condemnation of personal preferences. It is simply an effort to maintain immersion and thematic cohesion on sim. If you aren’t sure if your avatar is within acceptable bounds, please reach out to a Moderator/Admin who will be happy to assist. If there are any other related concerns, we ask that you please privately contact a Moderator/Admin for assistance.