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What defines my character?

When you create your character you will have a unique name and appearance. You will be able to customize your skills and abilities from a variety of options. As your character grows you can acquire uniforms, various types of clothing and items, and even vehicles for local transportation. The more success you enjoy the better you can support the team effort to develop space.

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Are there levels?

There is no leveling system in SFO. The game is skill-based, where your character is defined by what it can do, not by a level. There are stages of character development that govern various abilities and permissions, but they are not like traditional levels that award training points or spells.

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How do I advance my character?

Completing missions grants experience, which in turn advances your Field of Study, which then lets you study the next tier of learning in that Field. Successful missions also grant you fame and respect from various contacts and organizations, leading to more varied and lucrative missions.

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Will I be far behind other players if I start after release?

No. SFO is designed so that a new player will be capable of accomplishing many of the tasks of a veteran, but perhaps not with the same success rate or efficiency. This will be offset by the players you group with, whose training and knowledge will “rub off” on you for a given mission, allowing you to contribute meaningfully to the Crew.

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What type of name can I choose?

You will be able to choose a First name and a Last Name. When you reach a certain stage in development, as yet to be determined, you may choose a Nickname. If you advance your Field of Study to a doctorate, you will be able to add the title of Dr. to your name.

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What statistics does my character have?

Health, Stamina, and Strength. Health is affected by physical damage and loss of life support. Stamina is affected by strenuous activity like spacewalking. Strength is affected by time in low-gravity, losing too much will ground your flight status until you can recover.

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Can I choose a country I'm from? Will that have any affect on my character?

Yes, and the flag of that nation will appear on your uniforms. Choosing a country has no impact on your personal statistics, although as a Space Agency director it may help your guild acquire additional mission contracts.

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Can I customize my character's appearance?

At character creation you will able to change the size and shape of the nose, ears, eyebrows, cheekbones, chin, and select from a multitude of hair styles and skin tones. You will be able to adjust your character's height and muscle mass.

You can also choose your own jumpsuits and flight suit uniforms for your Space Agency and design your own space suits. When off-duty you may also customize your appearance with various forms of clothing and accessories for role-playing.

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Can I have multiple characters?

Yes. The exact number is still undecided.

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Can my character become famous?

You can be, if you are successful as an astronaut or Director of a Space Agency.

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Can my character die?

In most cases it will be difficult for player characters to die. With a critical loss in life support your character will become incapacitated. A “rescue mission” can be launched by the International Space Center , but once returned, your character will be grounded for a time until you recover.

NPCs, however, can die permanently without life support. The loss of such personnel, if employed by a Space Agency, will put the guild on restrictions as well and you will lose some business from contractors and governments.

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Do characters require food and water to survive?

Food and water are required to keep a player’s strength up to perform certain tasks sufficiently. You do not need to physically eat or drink, although you can for role-playing purposes, but you should have consumables on board to sustain your Strength stat. NPC crewmembers require food and water aboard or they will begin to lose Strength and Health.

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Can characters swim?

Yes, and depending on space center location, there will be areas where you can do so if you choose.

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Do characters age?

Yes. Everyone starts out around the age of 25. At intervals of 6 game years (6 months of real time) your character’s default appearance will noticeably age. However, you can use various methods to reduce your appearance of age up to 20 game-years. For instance, someone who has been playing for 2 real years (20 game years) will look around 50, but they can make themselves appear to be 30 if they so choose. Characters stop aging at 55. Age has no affect on stats.

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Does a character's gender have any affect on its stats?

No, it does not. And neither does age or nationality.

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Can our characters sit in chairs?

Yes, your character will be able to in chairs, such as in Spacecraft to fly them, and at Mission Control consules to use their functions.

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Can I build my own spacecraft and rockets?

Yes, but you must be part of a Space Agency to utilize the learned ability to design spacecraft and rockets. Once designed, the blueprints will be handed over to a manufacturer, one you have out-sourced or contracted locally. You will have an opportunity to test them through wind tunnels or readiness-firings before producing that design for spaceflight.

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Can my character own property?

Yes, your characterwill initially have a berth at one of the starting Space Centers, to store various items. Once you join a Space Agency, and purchase a space center site of your own, your guild can construct housing for members to store their things on-site. Space Agencies will also be able to build space stations with living quarters and assign them to Agency members to live and work in.

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Concepts and Site Design by Jeff McDowall, 2005
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