FAQ;

[whatremainsmod]

What is this game about?
What Remains is an AU zombie apocalypse game where the zombie apocalypse has been going on for two years now. Characters have made their way to a safehouse complex, generally referred to as "The Compound" that will serve as their main base while they try to survive the apocalypse.

How old do I have to be to play?
18 and older please; there’s bound to me plenty of adult situations on top of death and horror.

I’m over 18 but my muse isn’t. Is that okay?
Yup! There’s no age limit on survivors in the apocalypse and there’s undoubtedly someone who will keep an eye on a minor! We just ask that you consider an appropriate age level that the character is playable in the setting. When writing your app, consider whether or not the child character would be capable of defending themselves if the need arrives and if the answer is “no”, then they’re too young.

Is this an AU game?
Yes it is. Your character was born in this world in whatever AU life you have planned out for them. Maybe Luke Skywalker was a farm boy in the Midwest who became a proficient zombie hunter. Maybe Natasha Romanov is still a defected Russian spy, but with no more government to serve, she tries to save people and bring them to the compound instead. While the sky's the limit, please try to make things appropriate for your character. X-23 from the Marvel comics is not going to make sense as having lived a life as a successful bubblegum pop singer who cares only about dresses and parties before the zombies come to life.

What kind of characters don’t you allow?
There aren’t a lot of limits as to who you can and can’t bring but we do ask that you don’t bring in OCs that are related to canon muses. Fandom OCs not related in any way to the main cast and OCs from original canons are fine. For example, a random SHIELD agent who never interacted with the Avengers or a random hunter you originally created for the Supernatural universe would be allowed. You can bring in relatives of OC’s in-game with permission from the original player -we will be confirming that permission was received.

Do I need to make a new journal for the game?
Nope! You can use your canon journal, just make sure to have your AU app readily accessible for other players to peruse. If playing a non-humanoid character, we recommend also adding in their human PB icons, but this isn’t required either.

My muse has powers in canon, do they still have them here?
Short answer, no.
Long answer, no powers means a more level playing field for all the characters and removes the possibility of one muse being able to just eradicate the zombie threat which would render the game moot. This also applies to supernatural creatures. You’re all human now.

My character is a robot/animal/non-humanoid creature. Do they have to be humanized?
Yes. The setting is catered towards human characters, so related to the above, we’re bringing all the Terminators, Transformers, and Bill Cypher down to the same level as everyone else.

Can’t we just kill all the zombies?
Also no. Again, that renders the game moot. Zombies are going to get killed as well as NPCs but more zombies will just take their place; they tend to converge on populated areas.

Zombies are slow and easy to kill though. How do you plan to keep it interesting?
We’re glad you asked! To make sure things don’t get stale, we’re talking two routes.
Route One: the organisation that created the virus is still alive and kicking. In fact, they’re still experimenting and every now and again, new threats are going to make an appearance.
Route Two: the zombies that already exist in the world will continue to evolve. Taking inspiration from Z Nation and The Last of Us, there will be all kinds of zombies.
Here’s some information on the different kinds that exist in game currently.

Do you allow multiples of characters?
The answer is, for plot purposes at this time, we’re saying no. We understand MCU characters and their comics counterparts or animated and live-action Disney characters are similar but can be very different in execution and personality, but for an AU game, it’s just not going to make sense for two people named Bucky Barnes to be wandering around who both conveniently lost their left arm or two brown-haired girls named Belle who love books to be at the same complex.

Do you allow Challenge Apps?
What Remains operates on an “the early bird gets the worm” basis; if someone has already applied to play a certain character, said character is theirs. Challenges add stress and role play is supposed to be fun and stress free!

Can my muse have a baby?
In general, yes. As far as in-game, the answer is no. We don’t want survival to be some super easy task but adding babies or even just young children complicates things. The idea is that everyone in the community will be capable of adding something and defending their home; kids don’t really fit into that.

What if my muse is already pregnant in canon?
This is the exception to the above. Muses that are pregnant for significant portions of their canon (e.g. Maggie Green or Lori from The Walking Dead or Polaris from The Gifted) are allowed but whatever remains of the pregnancy would need to be played out with a sense of reality. This means if your muse is 6 months pregnant in canon, you’d need to be prepared to commit to at least 2.5 more months of real time to play, and then having a young baby to take care of..
Original characters will be considered on a case by case basis.

Can my muse adopt a pet?
Similarly to the above, pets just add another level of complication. This rule is possibly subject to change later down the line once the game becomes more established, however it’s doubtful that we’ll ever just open it up for all kinds of cute, fluffy pets. It would just be another mouth to feed that needs protecting that takes away from their own resources and doesn’t provide anything else.


How long do plots last?
As long as it takes. No really. We’re not doing on-the-clock plots every month. Depending on participation from the characters, this will decide how long each plot lasts and where the gameplay will go from there.


Do all the characters arrive at the same time?
Save for the first group of characters, no. You can have your character arrive at any point after you’re accepted, so people have staggered arrivals instead of all coming in one big wave at the beginning of the month.


What happens when a character drops?
There’s a couple different things that can happen! You can have your character leave the compound and continue on their journey across the wasteland. You can have your character die by zombie or other means. Or, with mod approval, you can have your character become a background NPC at the compound, which means the mod then can use them for plots and such at their convenience. Keep in mind with this last option, you will not get a say in what your character does afterwards, so they still might die, lose a limb, etc. in future plots.


What if I app an already deceased character?
Reports of that character’s death were greatly exaggerated. Or a person who looks very much like them but is not them shows up in a good old fashioned soap opera plot moment.