Welcome to Chapter Thirteen, a literate Harry Potter RPG set in the Late Medieval era. We're always happy to see new members, but we know from experience that starting at a new RPG can always be a little daunting, which is the reasoning behind this little step-by-step guide to getting started, getting accepted, and getting involved at our little board.

If you've got any questions and can't find the answer anywhere on the forum, don't hesitate to give me, as I'd be more than happy to answer any questions you've got: you can either post in the Questions and Suggestions forum, or send a Private Message to me (Theresa) and I'll get back to you asap. I don't bite - I swear!

So, without further ado, getting started at C13 from registering to being accepted.

1. When you register, register with your character's First and Last name, both capitalized and with a space between the two of them. It looks nicer, and if you don't, chances are whichever administrator goes through your application with you later will ask you if it's alright if they change it to that anyway. If you wish, you may include your character's middle name as well, but that isn't required, and there's no reason to include it if your character doesn't go by their middle name anyway. If you want to register with the name your character goes by, be it a nickname or a middle name or something completely different, instead of their first name, feel free to do so instead.

2. Read around the information forums. You don't have to read everything (and there is a lot of information, so I really wouldn't advise it unless you're bored and have nothing better to do), but do try to read these threads:

• General Rules
• Hogwarts, C13 Style
• The FAQ

If you've got any questions, give Theresa a shout or post in the Questions and Suggestions forum, and someone would be more than happy to give you a hand or point you in the right direction.

3. Do you feel ready to apply? Awesome! Make sure you use the proper Application Format, or one of the admin will come after you with a pointy stick to do unspeakable things... and you really don't want that.

4. Write your biography, and keep in mind the minimums listed in the application format - as we say there, those are just the bare minimums. If you've taken a look around the Accepted Character forum, you'll have noticed that the minimums in most of the biographies exceed (or even double) the minimums, and this is what we like to see. There's no such thing as too much detail!

5. Post your application and wait for an administrator to review it. We're a literate RP and have fairly high standards, and so don't be daunted if I reply to your biography with a list of things to change or expand upon. Mostly, we go for expansions, and we approach biographies in the same way that we want ours to be approached. Please note, we have a limit of three reviews total, because while our standards are high, we try not to make them impossible - we look for skilled writers, not demi-gods. After all, we're all human too. Generally you'll only have to edit once if you've met the biography minimums.

6. You've been accepted - sweet! But now what? Your biography will have been moved to the Accepted Characters forum and your character added to the rosters already, but that doesn't give you much of a way to get started. Some things to do right after getting accepted would be to claim your character's face. Also, check out the character histories forum and the Character Plots forum and start a thread for your character and/or reply to other people's threads to form relationships and plot ideas for your character. It's a good way to get threads started. Lastly, feel free to start an open thread and tell everyone in the call outs thread so people know it's there. If you're still not sure who everyone is, take a look at the contact/who's who thread.

And there you have it! Are you still feeling lost and confused? Give Theresa a shout!