Shard of Alderaan closed RP MegaThread

Hey everybody, this is the megathread for the Shard of Alderaan closed RP! The purpose of this RP is to string together several large, planned out campaigns that all contribute to a single story while drawing in characters of various backgrounds and motivations, ultimately pitting them in lethal scenarios while providing the drama and intrigue that we all know and love about Star Wars. The idea is that the overall story will be comprised of several "major RP arcs" that will include all characters in story-progressing encounters ranging in size from entire planets down to single encounters between characters. In between those major arcs, small RPs including a few characters are done to introduce character-building situations and to flesh out motivations that writers may want for their characters.

This post will be updated periodically to reflect changes in the RP's organizational structure, to include new posts made in-character that affect the story, and threads where you can contribute your ideas for RPs that may happen in the future!

Planning threads:
Original planning thread
Good guys planning thread
Bad guys planning thread

What RP has happened so far:
Archais, Kruor, and Altus discover the Shard 
The Sith have their initial meeting on Korriban


RP Coordinators: these are folks who have volunteered to be go-to guys/gals for all things pertaining to this RP. This includes arc planning, character inclusion, questions, and, where necessary, dispute resolution. Although they have stepped up for both in-character factions involved, they are tuned in to both sides and are under no such constraints or prejudices out-of-character. Feel free to approach any of the following with any idea, question, comment, or concern. We are still looking for more coordinators, so let us know if you're interested!

• Kel Sentriss

• Aerandir Calmacil

• Darth Belial

Want to get involved? Please make a post on this thread expressing interest or send a PM to one of the RP coordinators with a short message on what your character's motivation is in-character, what you as a writer want to do/have your character undertake, and how you plan on your character getting involved. Unfortunately, with an RP of this size, it can be something of a challenge to incorporate characters so the responsibility falls to each writer to communicate OOC and establish a plan for their character being written into the story. Above all, and with all dimensions of this RP, communication with your fellow writers is paramount to an engaging story and a positive experience for you and other RPers.

Frequently Asked Questions:

• What is the Shard of Alderaan? - The Shard of Alderaan is the main catalyst of the story. In our closed-universe RP, two Sith and a Jedi discover a crystal in the remains of (you guessed it!) Alderaan that contains the aggregated life force of the planet's billion residents when the Death Star canonically destroyed the planet. The Sith plan to use the artifact to create a superweapon and with it threaten the entire galaxy, while the Jedi seek to stop them before it's too late. Along the way, other parties get drawn in, and we have our RP.
  
  

• Wait, this is a closed RP? So I can't join? - Not at all! The title "closed RP" simply means that we plan the RP out beforehand (not line-by-line, but rather, we have a game plan of what events must transpire to advance the story - the filler material, character motivation/development, etc. is all you). What this also entails is that you take a somewhat active role in the planning stages - contribute an idea that you'd like to RP, help it to fit into the overall story, then we make it happen in-character. If a character shows up uninvited or does something that seriously threatens the integrity of the story, they will be contacted by an RP coordinator and a resolution will be found, up to and including asking the writer to discontinue their inclusion.

• My character isn't a good guy or a bad guy! What do I do? - That's a difficult question. Some characters have complex motivations, but this does not mean they don't fit into one category or another. Take a look at each group's planning thread and see if an operation they are planning doesn't mesh with what you want. Remember: just because your character doesn't morally align with the group's pursuits doesn't mean you can't reasonably write with them. In similar fashion, we ask that if a writer truly wishes to remain neutral that they do the work of getting themselves into the story by contacting a coordinator and working together to find a solution. Want to smuggle stuff? Cool - which side is the more likely to need things smuggled? Is your character a lover of torture or killing others? If so, do you really think he shouldn't be on the side of the antagonists in some capacity? This is more for planning and structure, remember, so even if you don't agree exactly with a side, joining one as a coordination group will help the planning stages tremendously. After all, what you do in-character can vary widely. Your OOC actions and which group you declare with will have no impact on what actually transpires unless you write it to be so. Consider carefully the title of "neutral" and ask yourself if someone truly neutral would get involved in the first place. They wouldn't want their home to get blown up, you say? Then wouldn't it make sense that they join the group, directly or indirectly, and fight back against the ones threatening to do exactly that?

More to come in the future! Stay tuned.