The Fourth Wall, Status Screens, and Recognizing Characters
The Nature of the Fourth Wall
The fourth wall is defined as the imaginary wall separating fictional characters from the real world, specifically the audience. To 'break the fourth wall' is to have a character do or say something that either directly or indirectly shows the character has some level of awareness that they are fictional or in a fictional setting. This is typically used as a source of humor.
The universe of Nippon Ichi breaks the fourth wall on a regular basis. As a result, the fourth wall is a very integral part of netherworld_rpg. Because many, many series do not incorporate any fourth-wall breaking whatsoever, we will do our best to describe the nature of the fourth wall in the Netherworld and how it should be treated.
The first thing to take into consideration is whether or not a character would be aware of the fourth wall. This is quite easy! Ask yourself one simple question: does the character break the fourth wall in canon? Regardless of whether the answer is yes or no, the answer to this question will be the same as the answer to the question of 'would the character break the fourth wall in the Netherworld?'
Awareness of the fourth wall is part of a character's characterization. There are characters in the Nippon Ichi universe absolutely aware of the fourth wall while there are other characters completely oblivious to it; as a result, a character being sent to the Netherworld does not automatically grant them awareness of the fourth wall. They will retain the same level of awareness as they have in whatever canon they are from.
The Status Screen
Now, what of the status screen? This in and of itself is like breaking the fourth wall, since it's a video game status screen, right? Well, yes and no. Characters who are aware of the fourth wall will be able to see them readily, but even those without any awareness can see it, albeit less easily. There is actually an in-character, plot-related reason for the existence of the status screens. Because of this, they are NOT simply mysterious, enigmatic things only those with an awareness of the fourth wall can see: the status screens really do exist, though they are made up of magic and spiritual energy and other occult stuff. To figure out how easily your character would be able to see the status screens, ask yourself how attuned to spiritual powers and magic the character is.
For example, certain characters in the series Soul Eater are capable of seeing the souls of people. When doing so in the Netherworld, they would see the status screen manifested on or around the soul. For another example, spiritually attuned characters such as shrine maidens (Think Kagome or Kikyo from Inu-Yasha or Reimu Hakurei from Touhou Project or likely the entire cast of Shaman King) would be able to see them with ease. Characters with advanced technology capable of picking up things of this sort would be able to see them as well.
Of course, everyone can eventually see the status screen. If someone who already knows of their existence points them out to someone without any powers or whatnot, the powerless person would likely be able to see them. Think of the status screens as being around and visible all the time, but so easily ignorable that most people will ignore them until pointed out. It doesn't take any effort or special powers to look at the status screens, but it does require a bit to notice them at first.
The status screens contain the following information:
-Name
-Title
-Level (Ignorable)
-Stats (Ignorable)
-Netherworld-gained EXP
-Skills, attacks, and abilities
-Equipment
-Occupation
-School Clubs
The bolded ones are particularly important, as these are either the most suspicious or could have the most interesting uses. Since they're so arbitrary and would rather people not try to figure out how strong their characters are in comparison to others, level and stats are ignorable.
Recognizing Other Characters
This is a big one. A very big, important one! Would a character recognize another, whether due to one being ridiculously famous in the real world or because they are from the same canon? It depends. For the former, it's best not to make that assumption. Just because Sonic and Mario are running around does not mean every character is going to know who they are, unless there's canonical basis that the character knows them. For example: Some anime/manga series have characters who read the famous, real-world magazine Shounen Jump; as a result, it would be possible for characters from these worlds to recognize characters from the various series in Shounen Jump.
Even if your character does recognize another for a reason like this, never, ever have a character tell another they are fictional without the other player's consent. The ONLY time this is okay is when the player of the other character says it is. Do not do this without permission. It is considered poor etiquette and can be incredibly frustrating. If the other person says no or you have no way of asking the player, then handwave it and say your character does NOT recognize the other.
Now, in regards to characters from the same canon: Not everyone in every series ever have met each other. Using Disgaea itself as an example: Overlord Mao from Disgaea 3 would not recognize Princess Rozalin from Disgaea 2. Yes, they are from the same series, but they never canonically met. They likely never would have heard of each other, much less met. Other series with huge casts, such as Fire Emblem, likely would not have characters who know every single other person.
I hope these fourth-wall related topics help make playing in netherworld_rpg easier and more enjoyable. If you have any questions, you are free--as always--to ask them here.
The fourth wall is defined as the imaginary wall separating fictional characters from the real world, specifically the audience. To 'break the fourth wall' is to have a character do or say something that either directly or indirectly shows the character has some level of awareness that they are fictional or in a fictional setting. This is typically used as a source of humor.
The universe of Nippon Ichi breaks the fourth wall on a regular basis. As a result, the fourth wall is a very integral part of netherworld_rpg. Because many, many series do not incorporate any fourth-wall breaking whatsoever, we will do our best to describe the nature of the fourth wall in the Netherworld and how it should be treated.
The first thing to take into consideration is whether or not a character would be aware of the fourth wall. This is quite easy! Ask yourself one simple question: does the character break the fourth wall in canon? Regardless of whether the answer is yes or no, the answer to this question will be the same as the answer to the question of 'would the character break the fourth wall in the Netherworld?'
Awareness of the fourth wall is part of a character's characterization. There are characters in the Nippon Ichi universe absolutely aware of the fourth wall while there are other characters completely oblivious to it; as a result, a character being sent to the Netherworld does not automatically grant them awareness of the fourth wall. They will retain the same level of awareness as they have in whatever canon they are from.
The Status Screen
Now, what of the status screen? This in and of itself is like breaking the fourth wall, since it's a video game status screen, right? Well, yes and no. Characters who are aware of the fourth wall will be able to see them readily, but even those without any awareness can see it, albeit less easily. There is actually an in-character, plot-related reason for the existence of the status screens. Because of this, they are NOT simply mysterious, enigmatic things only those with an awareness of the fourth wall can see: the status screens really do exist, though they are made up of magic and spiritual energy and other occult stuff. To figure out how easily your character would be able to see the status screens, ask yourself how attuned to spiritual powers and magic the character is.
For example, certain characters in the series Soul Eater are capable of seeing the souls of people. When doing so in the Netherworld, they would see the status screen manifested on or around the soul. For another example, spiritually attuned characters such as shrine maidens (Think Kagome or Kikyo from Inu-Yasha or Reimu Hakurei from Touhou Project or likely the entire cast of Shaman King) would be able to see them with ease. Characters with advanced technology capable of picking up things of this sort would be able to see them as well.
Of course, everyone can eventually see the status screen. If someone who already knows of their existence points them out to someone without any powers or whatnot, the powerless person would likely be able to see them. Think of the status screens as being around and visible all the time, but so easily ignorable that most people will ignore them until pointed out. It doesn't take any effort or special powers to look at the status screens, but it does require a bit to notice them at first.
The status screens contain the following information:
-Name
-Title
-Level (Ignorable)
-Stats (Ignorable)
-Netherworld-gained EXP
-Skills, attacks, and abilities
-Equipment
-Occupation
-School Clubs
The bolded ones are particularly important, as these are either the most suspicious or could have the most interesting uses. Since they're so arbitrary and would rather people not try to figure out how strong their characters are in comparison to others, level and stats are ignorable.
Recognizing Other Characters
This is a big one. A very big, important one! Would a character recognize another, whether due to one being ridiculously famous in the real world or because they are from the same canon? It depends. For the former, it's best not to make that assumption. Just because Sonic and Mario are running around does not mean every character is going to know who they are, unless there's canonical basis that the character knows them. For example: Some anime/manga series have characters who read the famous, real-world magazine Shounen Jump; as a result, it would be possible for characters from these worlds to recognize characters from the various series in Shounen Jump.
Even if your character does recognize another for a reason like this, never, ever have a character tell another they are fictional without the other player's consent. The ONLY time this is okay is when the player of the other character says it is. Do not do this without permission. It is considered poor etiquette and can be incredibly frustrating. If the other person says no or you have no way of asking the player, then handwave it and say your character does NOT recognize the other.
Now, in regards to characters from the same canon: Not everyone in every series ever have met each other. Using Disgaea itself as an example: Overlord Mao from Disgaea 3 would not recognize Princess Rozalin from Disgaea 2. Yes, they are from the same series, but they never canonically met. They likely never would have heard of each other, much less met. Other series with huge casts, such as Fire Emblem, likely would not have characters who know every single other person.
I hope these fourth-wall related topics help make playing in netherworld_rpg easier and more enjoyable. If you have any questions, you are free--as always--to ask them here.