Character Creation

Colors & Markings & Fur

VISUAL GUIDE HERE

For all intents and purposes, the Valleyfolk are wolves in a fantasy world, and this should be taken into consideration when creating a design! We encourage the use of colors/contrasts/patterns when creating your design but please keep the following in mind:

• Valleyfolk come in a wide variety of coat colors, however pelts are to remain natural/semi-realistic. So please use the saturation/hue sliders in moderation as bright purple or green dogs are not allowed!

• Valleyfolk are not domesticated, this means that any markings that are exclusively found on domestic dogs are not allowed. This includes things such as: merle, piebald, brindle, Dalmatian markings, German Shepherd markings, socks/stockings etc.

• Markings that are not found on wolves are also not permitted. This includes markings such as: zebra stripes, leopard spots, appaloosa spots, etc.

• Markings must be symmetrical on the body

• "Cutie marks" are not allowed within the group, this means markings that look like (and are RECOGNIZABLE as) other silhouettes (i.e. hearts, stars, crescents, etc.)

• Acceptable/common eye colours within the Valley include: Gold/Amber, Yellow, Green, Brown, Hazel, Grey, Blue, Red, Orange, etc.

  • • • We have special traits that can be purchased in the SHOP that can change your character's eye color to something different, or include multiple! (second character and beyond only, first characters cannot enter with these traits/mutations)

      • Heterochromia can be purchased as a trait to add to your character. This allows your character's eyes to be separately two different colors (right eye is entirely blue, left eye is entirely orange). It also allows for a single eye to display two colors (right eye is entirely blue, left eye is half blue, half orange)

      • Pink/Purple eyes can also be purchased as a mutation to add to your character.

• We highly encourage style, but keep in mind that Valleyfolk fur should not look like hair! Stylization of the fur on the forehead/cheek fur is allowed in moderation! Please do not make your fur look like a wig. Similarly, please keep fur to an appropriate length! Tails should not be able to drag on the floor and cheek fur should not look like curtains.

As usual, please don't hesitate to reach out to the group for any questions/inquiries on design!

Scars & Injury

Scars tell a story and we love stories! WSV does not charge for scarring but please keep the following in mind:

• Individual scarring/injury should not take up more than 30% of the body. While within a fantasy setting, there are little means for Valleyfolk to mend large wounds without human intervention (there are no humans, alas)

• Similarly, missing limbs from injury is simply not possible in this setting, Valleyfolk will most certainly perish from shock or blood loss when losing a large limb (i.e. paw, tail, leg, etc.). Missing limbs must be a condition that Valleyfolk are born with (see the SHOP for more detail).

• Torn/Ripped (base of ear must still be intact) ears gained from injury are allowed. If the ears are missing due to a birth defect, this must be purchased through the SHOP.

Drawn vs. Commissioned

WSV is a group that focuses on storytelling and roleplay! While we accept commissioned work for your character application, all future (canon) art submitted of said character must be either drawn by you or through collaborative pieces. Character application art must be "one-of-a-kind", meaning:

• Commissioned work is acceptable for the initial character application ONLY

• Free to use/Pay to use bases of any kind are NOT allowed

• AI generated images are NOT allowed

• Artwork must be created for YOUR use and must be acquired for this purpose.

Traits/Mutations

There are a number of different traits or mutations that one can add to their characters available in the SHOP. Your character cannot be created freely with these traits/mutations, which means your first character also cannot enter with any of these as they have no way of purchasing them.

These traits/mutations include:
Gigantism, Dwarfism, Missing Limb/Ears/Tail DUE TO BIRTH, Albinism, Leucism, Melanism, Bent ears, Blindness/Deafness DUE TO BIRTH, Unnatural Pupil Shape, Pink/Purple Eyes, Heterochromia, Polydactyly, Glowing eyes, Long fangs, Void eyes, Fully webbed paws, Horns/Antlers

Names

Names are unique in the Valley, and as such have some rules regarding them:

• Please use your own discretion when choosing a name for your character, but note that offensive/insensitive names will be denied. In short, please don't name your characters after historical dictators, etc.

• No two characters will have the same name at the same time, as such we ask that you consult the Members List as well as the Forbidden/Reserved Names before choosing your own!

• Similarly, your character can only have ownership of one Primary Name (this is the name displayed on the application/members list). I.e. Tim is born as Timothy but only goes by Tim, the name Timothy is available for use while Tim is not.

• Names cannot include two different names that have a space between, almost like a first and last name.

  • Naming a character Lockwood is acceptable.

  • Naming a character Flint Lockwood, or Lock Wood, is NOT acceptable.

• The names of (properly) retired characters cannot be used as the owners have the right to bring these characters back at any point.

• We allow (with some stipulations) players to "reserve" a name on a list found HERE. This is mainly for plots that are time sensitive/happening in a short timespan (i.e. npc family being brought in, pups, etc.). Stipulations include:

  • • Only (1) name can be reserved for a player at a time.

    • Names can only be reserved for a maximum of 6 months before they are removed from the list. 

    • To prevent "holding", the same player cannot reserve the same name again after the first reservation has expired.

    • If you decide within the 6 months that you no longer wish to reserve the name, you are able to reserve the same name (1) more time after.

    • If you leave the group for whatever reason, any reserved names will be removed from the list.

    • If you wish to change the name that you have reserved, the previous name will be available again.

Age

While there's no need to include exact ages in your character application (time is a blur), be mindful of group timeline when creating your character! Age and History have close ties with each other and the group TIMELINE can be a useful resource! 

First characters MUST be Young Adult or older.

Please include one of the following on your app:

• Pup (0-6 months)

• Adolescent (7-12 months)

• Young Adult (1-2 years)

• Adult (2-8 years)

• Elder (8+ years)

In regards to aging up your character:

• Pups should age up to Adolescent after 6 real life months.

• Adolescents should age up to Young Adult after 6 real life months.

• Once your character reaches the Young Adult stage, they are not required to continue eating the Sims birthday cake (aka force an age-up). However, please don't keep them frozen at the same age forever. While we aren't going to enforce any age ups because everyone's lives require they take things at their own pace, you should consider at least aging up by a year after a real-life year goes by (even if they're still an adult, one might say their character has gone from 4 to 5 years old). This especially applies to young adults, who really are only that for one year of their life.

Characters ages Adolescent and younger require a guardian that is aged Adult or older in order to enter the group! Please find a guardian in our classifieds channel prior to sending in a ticket for character creation!

Height

The following is the range your character can freely be within for height:

• Height: 25-34 inches (64-89 cm)

• If you would like your character to be under or exceed these limits, please see the gigantism or dwarfism mutations that can be purchased in the SHOP. Please keep in mind, first characters cannot have either of these mutations, and MUST be within these ranges.

Build

Instead of putting a number for your character's weight, WSV asks members to utilize descriptions for it. This will fall under your character's "Build", where you can describe them being a beefier/muscular character, a heavyweight, thin and slim, tall and lanky, short and stocky, etc.
A few examples of what this may look like (click on the names for the visual ref for comparison):

• Macgyver

  • "Considered to be quite broad the general appearance of the Árd-Rí is rather easy to see. With wiry, thick fur that sags from his body, thick whiskers and shallow eye sockets, Macgyver has a rather strange, but appealing appearance. Standing tall, proud and with confidence in not just himself, but his abilities. He has a shaggy tail, wide shoulders, with a large head paired with scarring where his ears would be."
    
    

• Ylva

  • "Long legs, lithe, built for speed. Deep chest with a tapered waist. Very Fluffy cheeks. Paintbrush shaped tail."
    
    

• Perseus

  • "In contrast to his abnormally small size when he was a pup, Percy has grown to stand among the tallest in Goldenwind. His fur runs long yet thinner than usual due to being one of the desert sands, most notably he is known for his famous “fur-collar”. While he holds a more solid build, Percy does tend to stay on the thinner side and has a hard time keeping a steady weight. Golden eyes reflecting that of the sands within the desert, his eyes hold the shape of the stars themselves carrying their clear and sparkling nature."

IMPORTANT NOTE
While WSV allows for the use of over/underweight characters, we would like to make sure everyone proceeds with caution when utilizing the extreme of either end of the spectrum. You are welcome to show your character at an unhealthy weight, but we ask that members do not consistently use this as the only defining trait of a character, or that it is a permanent feature of the character. A minor under/overweight is okay, but if it is extreme, please be sure to bring it up to staff before going along with the plot/creation. We would like to proceed with caution for members and viewers alike who may experience discomfort with these topics being heavily utilized or romanticized.

Additionally, you will be required to make note that this will not be their permanent state. Their build section should look something like the following;

• AT HER HEALTHIEST: Yew has a particularly ordinary build. She does not excel in any one physical skill, but can still hold her own against prey and threats alike. Average in height, but a bit lighter in weight, Yew has learned how to throw her weight around to her advantage when she would get into playful scuffles with her siblings growing up. The fur around her neck is longer and more flowy than fluffy, while her tail seems to be a bit of the opposite.

• CURRENT HEALTH STATE: Yew is malnourished and severely underweight. She has lost a lot of her weight and muscle mass due to a lack of properly taking care of herself and feeding herself. However, given how much she has been walking around the Valley in search of her family, she has been able to maintain some strength in her legs, and has a lot of endurance. Her fur has become thin and long, not working to maintain its health and it reflects her poor mental state.

Personality

In this section, tell us who your character is, how they behave, what makes them tick! In general we require a minimum of 200 words for this section (but we always appreciate more), but this does NOT include the listing of the traits. Please ensure to include a variety of positive & negative traits in this section, we don't want to have characters that are perfect goody-two-shoes and have no flaws, but we also don't want entirely evil terrible baddie-bads. You can still have a character that leans more morally good or evil but still have a balanced personality that include positive & negative traits that don't conflict with who they are.

Pre-Group History

The minimum word count for Pre-Group History is 300 words. This is the place to tell your whole life story (prior to your journey in the Valley) whether it started in the valley or far from it. Feel free to consult the group TIMELINE for events that your character may have experienced within the valley.

This is a general purpose template that includes all the minimum required fields.

Name: [Please keep it to just one part/word! No ‘John Wick’ or ‘Wendy Darling’]

Current Age: [How old is your character currently?]

Starting Age: [How old was your character when they joined the group? (it'll be the same as current age when you first create a character, even if their bio talks about them as a pup)]

Gender: [What is your character’s preferred gender?]

Pronouns: [she/her | they/them | he/him | it/its | she/he/they | etc!]

Faction: [What pack does your character currently belong to?]

Rank: [Where does your character sit in their pack’s hierarchy? All new characters start at the lowest rank of their faction, unless previously discussed with staff/faction leader(s).]

Task: [What is your character’s job in their pack? All new characters begin taskless, but you can mark them as "Aspiring [TASK]" if you have an idea of what task they'll take.]

Height: [How tall or short is your character? Please keep it within these parameters: 25 to 34 inches (64 to 89 cm). Anything outside of it that was not discussed prior with admins will be denied.]

Build: [Give us a sentence or two about your character’s build and how they’re structured. For example, what is their stature/weight/strength like, any distinct scars, does their fur sit funny in certain spots, really fluffy eyebrows, are they super tall and lanky, short and stocky?]

Family: [List any immediate family (parents or siblings only for NPCs please!) or any family currently in the group. If you want to expand on your family (namely for NPCs), feel free to make a separate family tree and link it here!]

Personality: [The minimum word requirement for personality is 200, not including the listing of the traits. Please include at least 5 personality traits/characteristics. Try to make them have a good balance between positive and negative traits! Everyone has flaws!]

History: [The minimum word requirement for history is 300. The history should go into detail about your character’s life before entering the group. If born into the group, you may simply include a short paragraph about your character’s in-game parents and their pack, or how their birth came about.]

Group Activity: [This will get filled out as you progress your character’s story throughout the group! Feel free to keep this empty for now until you have stuff to fill it with, or include a link to an outside source you’ll be using to keep track of this! It’s up to you to keep your character’s timeline in order, staff will not do this for you.] 

**If your application art is commissioned, please ensure that you include linked credit somewhere in the written portion as well.

The above information is our minimum requirement, and MUST be included in the deviantart description for your character. If you want to add any flairs or further fleshed out information about your character (which this you can still do on deviantart!), you may do so on external sites and link it. Just make sure this specific information is included in the description on deviantart.

• • There is a cap of 20 active characters across the entire group per member. However, there is no limitation on where all of these slots can be used! If you'd like to have 10 characters in Eirmuir, 4 in Goldenwind, 3 in Timberhold, and 2 Dispersals, you can absolutely do that!

    • • Characters that you have retired or have gone inactive do not count towards this cap, and once you retire a character/a character goes inactive, it drops the number of active characters you have.
        
        

  • Before you bring in any additional characters, all of your current characters must be marked safe for activity. Please wait until you have received confirmation from an admin marking your character as safe before you submit a new character for approval, as there may be issues with your activity submission that need to be corrected. 

    • • That being said, no new characters will be permitted to enter the group in the last week of a season. This is to prevent people from having to rush to either get their character's AC completed or run the risk of having the character force retired right after being brought in. You must either bring the character in prior to the final week of a season, and still complete the activity check for them, OR wait until the new season begins, turn in ACs for all currently active characters, and then bring them in.
        
        

  • When bringing in a new character, that character's visual and written applications should be fully completed as if you could submit them to the group as is the instant you submit them to staff. While staff will do design approvals and help answer specific questions about a character's bio, staff will not start the process of reviewing a character until they are fully completed. This is to prevent any changes, accidental or intentional, that come to a character as they are being refined/completed by you AFTER they received admin approval in the state they were sent to us in.

    • • You also cannot purchase a character slot ahead of time and reserve it for future use. Character slots are purchased AFTER a new character has been submitted and gotten full staff approval. We will let you know when you can submit the purchase for their slot!
        
        

  • NEW MEMBERS: New members have a 2 month "trial" period for the group before they can bring in any new characters. This is to give them a proper chance to settle into the group and get used to how the group operates. For 2 months from their joining date, new members can only work with the character they were accepted with, even if they submitted an activity check for them. Once those two months are up, and they've submitted an activity check for that season for their character, they may start bringing in new characters!
    
    

  • "Fan Characters" are prohibited

    • • Media plays a large influence on writing and our work, but be mindful to only take inspiration from media rather than just recreating your favourite show/film/game characters

      • When we review your application we should not be able to think: "This is like Steele from Balto but as a wolf!"

      • In general, characters created for WSV should be original characters made by you! While they can share the same name as a character from a different media source, share similar physical traits, or similar personality traits, they should not be direct copies.
        
        

  • Naming or identifying mental illnesses and disabilities in your characters’ bio or IC is prohibited.

    • • We want to respect that these topics can be triggering for some, especially if represented incorrectly. We ask that players do not use them as a means to define your character.
        
        

  • Design Changes (may require shop purchase)

    • • Making small tweaks to your character's design is fine (and costs nothing!) as long as your character is still recognizable! These include changes such as:

        • Changing hue/saturation to a minor degree

        • Adding removing small markings (ticking, small shoulder markings, etc.) Larger changes may require a ticket/shop purchase!

        • You may make winter/summer coat colourations as you see fit, provided the original design stays the same/recognizable

        • As always with designs please never shy away from sending in a ticket if you have any questions.
          
          

  • If you'd like to explore a darker theme for your character and/or their background, please submit either a character creation or plotting ticket to discuss your thoughts and ideas with admins prior to officially writing up and submitting your character. Unfortunately, many times those themes aren't exactly black and white and there's going to be many "case-by-case" situations for what we will and won't allow. We don't want you writing up a full story and bio for your character, only for the majority of it be denied by admins. Give us an idea of what you're looking to do, and we can go from there.

Deviantart is a buggy site, and is prone to just all sorts of dumb stuff happening to it. To try and keep things accessible to you guys, below you should find PSDs for each faction's application!

Faction & Dispersals Application Folder

(if the link is inaccessible, please note the group and let staff know so we can try to fix it!)