One of the most heavily argued issues in the creating of the 'Nexus' newsgroup was the code- do we use it, or not? What should go in it? What should stay out? Who's going to use it? Why do we need it? and, most importantly, What's it going to look like? Well, after 300+ emails and a lot of fine-tuning, Paul Gilham (Samurai) put out the 'final' version of the code. That doesn't mean that it won't be changed again, but at least it was something that we could all agree on to start with. Much thanks to Paul for dealing with all of our nit-picking and putting it all together.
NC.D Sg Ce Gm LwA Ay480 WcfbWind M0 P6c0 T5
The Nexus Code is based loosely on the AFD's Dragon Code, created by Red Dragon and maintained by Baxil. Thanks to all those involved in the making of both that and this.
The full Nexus Code starts with NC.
This code immediately follows the NC.
NC.D dragons and wyvernsExample: NC.(Dwarf) for a shapeshifter currently in dwarven form
Simply add a stroke between the two relevant races.
Example: NC.H/orc for a human-orc cross
There are two systems for this, depending on how specific you want to be. Firstly, if a rough description is sufficient, use one of the following codes -- the parenthesised animals are suggestions for that category.
St tiny (domestic cat or smaller)Alternatively, you can be more exact by basing this section of the code on the longest dimension of a character, so most humanoids will use height, dolphins and snakes length,for example. Quadrupeds may use either -- their height is measured at the shoulder for such purposes).
Developing a suggestion by Wyrm, the prefix S is followed by H and/or L for height and length and the measurement. For reference purposes, 1m ~= 3.25', 1cm ~=0.4", and 1km ~= 0.6 miles.
Example: a 5'10" human would be SH5'10", and a horse 1.5 metres and 3 metres long would be either SL3m or SH1.5m
Simplified from the Dragon Code, this section consists of 'C' followed by letters for skin and hair color, and modifiers. If your character is entirely fur-covered, then assume the pigmentation in your code counts for both.
Ca silver (from 'argentum', its heraldic equivalent)Example: a turquoise dragon would be CTurquoise
If your color is other than the basic hue, these might help:
Multicolored creatures may wish to specify the ways in which their colors are combined with these symbols:
Example: a human whose black hair has a white streak in it would be Cf=e|w while a piebald horse would be Cw@b
(Thanks to Theslin for suggesting @ as mottled in the Dragon Code, and K'Urlac for suggesting _ as underside in this one.)
Those in transition from one type to another -- Cw>e is a white creature whose color is changing to black.
There are several possible options for this:
Gf femaleThose in transition from one type to another -- Gm>f is a male creature changing to female.
If a character's personality indicates a different gender to their physical one, note the former in parentheses: Gf(m) is a female that always acts as a male.
This category should not be included in characters' Nexus Codes if they have the usual number of limbs for their species (dragons are assumed to have four legs and two wings for this purpose). However, if there are any difference from the norm, use the following categories, adapted from Shadowdragon's and Kaijima's suggestions:
La an arm (any limb used mainly for manipulation rather than locomotion)and add the appropriate suffix:
/ one crippledExamples: a wingless griffin would be LwA, a lizard with eight legs (eight!?) would be LlPP and a man who had lost both legs to a shark would be Ll-2
This denotes your character's level of maturity and physical age. All the numerical ages given in the first part of the code are approximate ages at which the average human would be in each category -- clearly other races will reach them at different times.
Ab Baby, toddler or hatchlingIf you want a more specific age in your code, simply add it after the age-band -- a 500 year-old elf might be Am500.
Many creatures have natural forms of attack, or a favourite weapon they are never without. This category covers the most common:
Wa bow or crossbow (any type)Examples: a dragon with a chlorine-gas breath would be WbChlorine, and a barbarian swinging his favourite axe would be WBattleaxe
If a creature has more than one weapon, include all -- a bear would be Wcfh, for instance.
Adapted from the section in the Dragon Code suggested by Drekana, this category refers to your character's general skill with magic.
M0 No skill at allBaxil notes: "I am inclined to treat the ! as a modifier to any of the other elements, so someone who isn't technically an Archmage but considers themself at the top of their trade can add a !."
Example: the inept court mage in a kingdom with no other sorcerers might conceivably be M!3
If your character uses magic granted by a deity or force of nature rather than by arcane ritual, add C after the M -- a priest whose god has seen fit to grant quite powerful magicks would be MC5, for instance.
(Thanks to Siege for suggesting this!)
If your character may be particularly adept or unskilled at one or more types of magic, place letters from the list below after the M, with appropriate numbers by each one.
a air/weatherIf your character has no powers outside those of his or her specialities at all, do not put a number immediately after the M.
Example: a fire and earth elementalist with a reasonable level of skill in the former but little in the latter would be Me2f5
This is another type of paranormal power your character can wield, but is quite separate from magic -- there are no outside power sources, merely the character's own psyche.
P0 Psi-what? (no skill at all)If your character is particularly adept or unskilled in one or more mental powers, place the appropriate letters from the list after the P, and note the power of that speciality as above.
a mental assault (mind-to-mind combat or possession of another's body)(Thanks to Siege and The Dorcat for these categories)
Example: a creature who is competent in most forms of psychic activity, but lacks any ability to influence physical objects with his his or her mind, would be P5k0
If your character has no powers outside those of his or her specialities at all, do not put a number immediately after the P.
This category shows your character's normal level of sensitivity to telepathic and empathic powers -- unless your character is more sensitive to one than the other, use the following code to represent both.
T0 Totally immune to all telepathy and empathy, including friendly communication and other psi-powers that the character might want to receiveIf your character's score for empathy is different from that of telepathy, the figure after the T will refer only to telepathy -- place an e (for empathic sensitivity) after that, followed by the appropriate number.
Example: a character that can block an empath strongly when concentrating, but telepathy only weakly, would be T6e5
Email: nexusstuff@angelfire.com
