Syntax: <emoteat [target] [string] [code]>

For a quick overview and a list of available codes, use <help emoteat> and <help emoteat codes>.

Have you read <help emoteat>? Are you still confused? So were we! No reason to fret, you have come to the right place. This extensive guide to emoteat will greatly enhance your roleplay and have you emoting at people like a pro. Before you begin, we suggest you read the following topics:

<help emote>, <help emoteat>, <help emoteat codes>, <help souls>, <help recognize>, <help color>, <help roleplaying>, <help speak> and <help languages>.

Done? Excellent. This guide is divided into parts and will cover the following topics:

1 The Basics: What is an “emoteat” and how do I use it?

2 Basic codes: What is in a $N(ame)?

3 $M(e), myself and I: How to emote at yourself.

4 Advanced: Say it like you mean it: How to use speech inside emotes.

5 Advanced codes: You, your and yours truly.

6 Extras: Powerposes, metaposes and how to avoid them.

First of all, an emote is a roleplay-tool that can be used to describe what your character does and how it reacts to its environment. You can describe your physical actions and gestures, as well as demeanor, appearance, facial expressions and body language.

An “emoteat” is simply an emote that is directed at a specific creature. This usually means another player, but the target can also be yourself, any coded npc (such as a vendor), any monster you encounter and even your horse! As long as it is a living creature, you can emote at it. Unlike a normal emote, emoteat is seen differently by everyone present, divided into the following categories:

• You.
• Your target.
• The room (everyone else).

You might be thinking: “Why do I need an emoteat? Can’t I just use names and pronouns in my emotes like a normal person?”

The short answer is you can, but we would prefer you do not. Sundering Shadows uses a “recognize system” (see <help recognize>) to allow people to introduce themselves by different names to different people. In some cases, using the name you know someone as, might not make sense for a third person in the room. By using the codes in emoteat, you ensure that everyone understands exactly who you are directing your emote at, even if they have them recognized as someone else entirely! More importantly though, emoteat opens up a whole new dimension of immersion for our players by allowing the use of second person (you). We feel that this blurs the line between you and your character.

“Fair enough,” you might say, “so how do I use it?”

The syntax is: <emoteat [target] [string] [code]>

[target] is the creature you are directing your emote at. [string] is the action you describe. [code] is the code you use to substitute pronouns (you/she/he etc), thus letting everyone in the room know exactly who you are targetting.

Emoteat uses the recognize system to translate the codes into names and pronouns. There are a total of 7 codes, which may seem daunting at first. Luckily for us though, we can look quite professional using only the basic 3 codes: $M, $N and $np. Let’s look at $N and $np first.

The target of your emote sees $N as “you”. Everyone else in the room sees $N as the “Name they have recognized your target as”.

An example:
Bob writes: <emoteat kismet laughs at $N.>
Bob sees: “You emote the following at kismet: **Bob laughs at you.”
Kismet sees: “**Bob laughs at you.”
The room sees: “Bob laughs at Kismet.” (or the name they have Kismet recognized as.)

Easy peasy.

As we take this a step further, we are going to assume that everyone has Kismet recognized as Kismet. Now, say Bob wants to specify that he is laughing at Kismet’s joke. This is where $np comes in handy.

It combines $N (name) and $P (possession), giving you the name in possessive form: Name’s.

The target of your emoteat sees $np as “your”. Everyone else in the room sees $np as “Name’s (Kismet’s)”.

Building on the above example:
Bob writes: <emoteat kismet laughs at $np joke.
Bob sees: “You emote the following at kismet: **Bob laughs at your joke.”
Kismet sees: “**Bob laughs at your joke.”
The room sees: “Bob laughs at Kismet’s joke.”

To summarize:

• $N is for Name (you)
• $np is for Name’s (your)

The codes are case-sensitive.

You can jump into any roleplay-situation with only these two codes. Using normal pronouns in combination with $N and $np is perfectly fine and often much quicker than trying to remember seven different ones. That’s the basics!

$M is replaced by your name, or the name people have you recognized as.

“Why do I need that,” you may ask, “I thought my name was added to the emote automatically?”

It is! However, using $M allows you to place your name anywhere in the emoteat, which lets you do some nifty things.

A: $M lets you start a sentence in a different way. With a proposition, for example:

Bob writes: <emoteat kismet With a shake of the head, $M laughs at $N.>
The room will see: “With a shake of the head, Bob laughs at Kismet.”

B: $M lets you write an emoteat in which your brown horse is the subject of the sentence:

If Bob writes: <emoteat horse The brown horse neighs and shoves its head into $M’s sack, rummaging for sweets.>
The room will see: “The brown horse neighs and shoves its head into Bob’s sack, rummaging for sweets.”

C: $M lets you color your entire emote by adding the color code before your name.

To do this, use yourself at the target of your emote and start with the color code of your choice:

If Bob writes: <emoteat bob [color code red] $M grins evilly.
The room will see: “Bob grins evilly.”

For a list of available color codes and how they work, see <help color>.

Obviously, this approach lets you create ambience as well. A bard could use emoteat in this way to portray his audience when performing. A druid could interact with a squirrel in a tree. If you’re outside, the cold wind might whip about your clothes and bite into your exposed skin. A seagull might attempt to shit on your head. If you are causing a ruckus, a guard might ask you and your friends to take your party elsewhere.

To summarize, $M is for MY NAME and allows you to put your name anywhere in the emoteat to create varied sentences and nifty roleplay situations. When directing an emote at yourself, do not use any of the other codes.

Please remember: While creating minor RP interactions through the use of emoteat is fine, you shouldn't use it to feign control of coded NPC's, such as vendors etc. For instance, feel free to use emoteat to have the waitress bring you an ale, but do not use it to have her perform actions outside the scope of her coded role. (Use <thought> and ask for an available avatar instead.) Additionally, be mindful of other players when using emoteat and always strive to let the target decide the outcome of your emote.

Instead of: <emoteat jenna The seagull flies past $M and shits on $np head!> Consider: <emoteat jenna The seagull flies past $M and drops a sticky white bomb aimed for $np head!>

The same goes for your own actions towards others of course. Unless the target of your emote is immobilized, do not assume you are able to hit it, for instance:

Instead of: With sudden speed, Jenna hits Bobby right in the mouth. Consider: With sudden speed, Jenna lashes out, curled fist aimed for Bobby’s cheek.

For guidelines on how to handle a situation in which your target is, in fact, immobilized, see <help roleplaying>.

Finally, a summary of the codes we have learned so far:

• $N is for “Name”: “You | Name (Kismet)”
• $np is for “Name’s: “Your | Name’s (Kismet’s)”
• $M is for “Me”: “My name”

At this point, you can jump straight into roleplay or see the next chapter for instructions on how to use speech inside emotes and advanced codes.

See also: <help emote>, <help emoteat>, <help emoteat codes>, <help souls>, <help recognize>, <help color>, <help roleplaying>, <help speak> and <help languages>

Welcome back! Now that you have mastered the basic $N, $np and $M of emtoeat, it is time for us to dive into the advanced section. In “emoteat102” we will cover the following two topics:

4: Say it like you mean it: How to use speech inside emotes.

5: Advanced codes: You, your and yours truly.

It is possible to use speech within an emote, but it only works with the emoteat command. To do so, set the text you want to say inside quotation marks. The text will appear in the language you are currently speaking (see <help speak> and <help languages>).

Syntax: <emoteat target [your action “your speech”.]>

As an example, if Bob is speaking in common and writes:
<emoteat kismet laughs at $N and says “That is hilarious!”
Those who speak common, will see “Bob laughs at Kismet and says “(common) That is hilarious!”
Those who do not speak common, will see:
“Bob laughs at Kismet and says “Oieou laya euioro!”” (Or some similar gibberish).

To use speech without addressing another creature, set yourself as the target of your emoteat. To set the color of your speech inside emotes, see <help colors>.

In addition to the basic $N, $np and $M, there are four advanced codes that you can use within your emoteat. They are called $P, $pp, $S and $O. None of these codes are substituted with your target’s name, so you will have to use them in combination with $N (name) or $np (Name’s). Let’s look at the two P’s first.

It translates into the possessive case of she/he/you and is used to address something that “belongs to your target”, such as “her coat”, “his hand”, “your path” etc (also known as an attribute adjective).

Your target sees $P as “your”. Everyone else in the room sees $P as “his” or “her”.

Bob could write: <emoteat kismet looks at $N and laughs at $P joke.>
Bob would see: “You emote the following at kismet: **Bob looks at you and laughs at your joke.”
Kismet would see: “**Bob looks at you and laughs at your joke.”
The room would see: “Bob looks at Kismet and laughs at her joke.”

$pp also translates into the possessive case of she/he/you, but it is used to address “that or those belonging to your target”, such as “that coat of hers, those boots of his, all those sacks of yours” etc (also known as a predicate adjective).

Your target sees $pp as “yours”. Everyone else in the room sees $pp as “his” or “hers”.

Bob could write: <emoteat kismet Laughing at $N, $M shakes his head at that joke of $pp.>
Bob would see: “You emote the following at kismet: “**Laughing at you, Bob shakes his head at that joke of yours.”
Kismet would see: “**Laughing at you, Bob shakes his head at that joke of yours.”
The room would see: “Laughing at Kismet, Bob shakes his head at that joke of hers.”

To summarize:

• $P is possession: “Your | His | Her”
• $pp is for possessions: “Yours | His | Hers”

The commands are case sensitive.

Got it? Excellent.

The last two codes are both used as an alternative to $N (name), adding some diversity to your sentence.

Your target sees $S as “you”. Everyone else in the room sees $S as “he” or “she”.

The target of your emote sees $O as “you”. Everyone else in the room sees $O as “him” or “her”.

We can combine these two codes to make an advanced sentence, like this:

Bob writes: <emoteat kismet smiles at $N and quickly moves over, offering $O a hand with that heavy chest $S carries.>
Bob sees: “**You emote the following at kismet: Bob smiles at you and quickly moves over, offering you a hand with that heavy chest you carries.
Kismet sees: “**Bob smiles at you and quickly moves over, offering you a hand with that heavy chest you carries.”
The room sees: Bob smiles at Kismet and quickly moves over, offering her a hand with that heavy chest she carries.”

To summarize:

• $N is for name: “You | Name” $np is for name’s possession: “Your | Name’s”
• $P is a single possession: “Your | His | Her” $pp are plural possessions: “Yours | His | Hers”
• $S is subjective: “You | He | She” $O is objective: “You | Him | Her”
• $M is myself: “Your name”

When using advanced codes, please remember to also use a basic code, such as $N or $np. Otherwise, the room still will not know who you are addressing! That’s all. Emoteat takes practise and practise makes perfect. Do not be afraid to use it!

For further reading, please see “help emtoeat103” for ways in which not to use emoteat. See also: <help emote>, <help emoteat>, <help souls>, <help recognize>, <help color>, <help roleplaying>, <help speak> and <help languages>,

Dear reader: The following paragraph is still a WIP and the view therein have not been approved by the powers to be. Consider it a friendly suggestion, for now.

Many games refer to emote as a “pose”. Whether you call it an emote or a pose, the essence remains the same: It is a roleplay-tool that can be used to describe what your character does and how it reacts to its environment. You can describe your physical actions and gestures, as well as demeanor, appearance, facial expressions and body language.

Now that you know how to use emoteat, let us look at two ways not to use it:

Meta-poses

For the purpose of this game, a meta-pose is an emote in which you describe what your character is thinking or feeling, as opposed to describing their actual, physical actions:

Instead of: Bobby thinks that Kreysneothosies is pretty full of himself, but does not comment out of fear of retaliation.

Consider: Bobby raises his eyebrows at Kreysneothosies in badly veiled contempt and mutters a dry “Really?” Seconds later, his eyes widen and he snaps his mouth shut, quickly looking away.

In the first instance, Kreysneothosies have no way of knowing what Bobby is thinking, so he is forced to ignore the offensive emote. In the second instance, Kreysneothosies may decide for himself if he notices Bobby’s remark or not and can react accordingly.

Instead of: Jenna is having a really bad day, but when she sees Kismet, she decides not to cry.

Consider: Jenna is looking pale and haggard. The moment she sees Kismet, tears spring from her eyes and she blinks them away hastily.

In the first instance, Kismet has no way of understanding that Jenna is having a bad day! Additionally, she is left with no clue as to how to handle the situation. In the second instance, Kismet is given good visual cues to determine Jenna’s mood and condition and can react accordingly.

Exception: Sometimes it is necessary to declare intent in an emote. If you are a doctor and are checking someone for signs of injury or disease, for instance, you might write: “Jenna places a hand on Bobby’s forehead, checking his temperature”. Use common sense and always describe your action first and foremost.

Power-poses

For the purpose of this game, a power-pose is an emote in which you impose your actions or interpretations upon another. Be mindful of other players. The fact that you want to do something, does not mean others will allow you to do it!

Instead of: Bobby can see that Kismet is angry, so he pulls away from her.

Consider: Bobby shifts uneasily as he looks at Kismet and pulls away from her.

In the first version, Bobby makes an assumption about Kismet’s mood, which may or may not be true, and imposes his interpretation onto her. In the second version, Bobby may still think that Kismet is angry, but he only describes his reaction to her.

Instead of: With sudden speed, Jenna hits Bobby right in the mouth.

Consider: With sudden speed, Jenna lashes out, curled fist aimed for Bobby’s cheek.

The second version gives Bobby the chance to avoid the blow, should he so choose, which is much better than simply hitting him.

Please note:We all like to keep the creativity flowing and the scene going. When the adrenaline is pumping, even a seasoned roleplayer might make the mistake of using a power-pose. Consider the example of Jenna hitting Bobby. Bobby has two options: He can allow Jenna to hit him and continue from there, accepting it as truth OR he can rewrite the action with his next emote.

1: Taken entirely by surprise by Jenna’s suckerpunch, Bobby reels back and hits the floor!

2: Bobby, ready for Jenna’s attack, dodges at the last moment. Jenna’s punch barely grazes his cheek. “Owe,” he says.

Both reactions are fine, but they may well have entirely different outcomes! Just because someone says they do something to you, it does not mean you have to allow it.

Exception: There are of course situations in which it can be quite alright to power-pose. If you and your friend always hug when you meet, for instance, it is probably okay to write “Jenna hugs Bobby” instead of “Jenna offers Bobby a hug.” There might come a time when you have another character immobilized (usually following a PK interaction), and in those situations, you are within your right to hit him. Sundering Shadows allows torture, but please see <help roleplaying> for guidelines and adhere to the “fade to black” rule explained there. Remember: All acts of violence require occ from all involved parties.

A note on NPC’s: It is also important that you are mindful of coded npc’s in your vicinity. While minor interactions may be fine, do not use emoteat to impose your actions upon any of them. Do not give them opinions, personalities etc. Minor interactions may be classified as “ordering a bite to eat and having a polite chat with the waitress/bartender”, “a guard telling you and your friends to please move along, because you are making a racket” or “a beggar thanking you for giving him some coins”. The waitress will not flirt with you and the beggar will not polish your shoes, at least not without the explicit confirmation from an avatar.

The bottom line is this: You control your own character. You do not control anyone else’s. Keep it fair, keep it fun and keep it going.

• $N is for name: “You | Name”
• $np is for name’s possession: “Your | Name’s”
• $P is a single possession: “Your | His | Her”
• $pp are plural possessions: “Yours | His | Hers”
• $S is subjective: “You | He | She”
• $O is objective: “You | Him | Her”
• $M is myself: “Your name”

See also: <help emote>, <help emoteat>, <help souls>, <help recognize>, <help color>, <help roleplaying>, <help speak> and <help languages>.