Beyond the above, there are special things a Force app needs to have addressed.

1) What SIDE of the force are you applying for?

On this MUSH, a character must either apply for a light position -or- a dark position, depending on which has been opened for applications at the time. You must specify up front which position it is you're applying for, and write your application for that side of the force. Ambiguity here is a bad thing.

2) Is this a NEW character or an EXISTING one?

Often, the RPA lets people apply for existing characters to get the Force, or, people can create a new character concept which would start out a force user. It's very important that you specify which avenue you're pursuing up front. :)

There are pros and cons to either side, you should consider up front.

If you take your existing character and give it the force, you've already got a background and good character development in place, and you already know a lot of people ICly that you can use to create plots and generate roleplay for the rest of the MUSH. The drawbacks are that you've got to come up with an explanation to weave into an already existing background about how your character has the force, and what's worse- your character, which used to be yours to do with as you please, will soon become something that you have to use to generate RP for other people, based upon a more rigid line for character development. Some people have such a hard time coping with the change in their characters that they burn themselves out and end up giving up the force slots.

If you make up a new character for the Force, you have the advantage of being able to work your background out to incorporate the force from the bottom up instead of having to go back in and piece it in after it's already been played.. and, you'll be able to start fresh, building all of your IC ties up as you go along. The downsides are numerous, though. You've never played this character before, and may find you don't even like it once you get into it. You also have to sell the RPA on buying that your new concept will work for the MUSH.. whereas, people who are applying for the Force in their old characters, have already proven their character ideas work, by virtue of existence.

3a) BACKGROUND: General

Give a brief listing of your character's general background, hilighting major points in their personal development either from their background itself or from past playing.

3b) BACKGROUND: How did your character GET the Force?

There's got to be an explanation for how your char became able to access the Force in a trainable way. Is there additional background information that sets this up as having been latent? Is there a triggering event that 'turns it on'? These are the kinds of things the RPA need to know! :)

3c) PERSONALITY

Where the background was an account of physical events, there should be a section in the application on the character's personality. What is this character like? What goes on inside their head? What are their motivations? What are they good at, or bad at, that helps define them as an individual? Do they have quirks? Prejudices? Special talents? What do they think about certain key aspects of the world that surrounds them, such as the relationships with their friends, family, loved ones? Do they have a favorite ship, a favorite droid, a favorite planet? What do they think about the Force, Jedi, etc? Things of this nature, where relevant, should be fleshed out here.

4) What's the FUTURE look like for your character?

Where do you see your character naturally progressing over time, given his or her background, his or her current IC situation, and his or her force alignment? Give the RPA some idea as to where you're interested in taking things once you get the Force. :) Would your character retain their current job and position, or would they leave it in order to fully pursue training? Would changes occur in their behavior? What are some of your short and long term goals for personal development?

5) Why YOU?

Take for granted that there will be at least 15 applications for any open force slot, if not more. Why should the RPA choose YOU over the other applicants? How is giving YOUR character the Force better for the MUSH than giving it to someone else? Explain how you would use your character to create roleplay for other people and how your character concept will make the MUSH a more interesting and better place.

Remember, a Force position is like an FC position- it's not about how it would be cool for your character if you got it, or how it'd be fun for you to RP your character with the Force. We assume everyone would think a Jedi slot to be cool and fun to play. :) For purposes of awarding the slot, though.. it's about how you would use your character as a tool for creating RP that helps the MUSH as a whole and sparks roleplay for a variety of different people across the player base.

This is important not only for the success of your application, but for your success in the character should your application gain you the spot- the RPA expect the player of a Force User to have the mindset 'where can I go to generate roleplay for others' and not, 'where can I go, to get RP for -me-'. A person who is selected who doesn't go out and use their character proactively to generate roleplay for others may eventually be asked to step down.

6) What's your ACTIVITY like?

Jedi slots are given to people who are active and consistently have access to the MUSH. People are expected to log in often during hours when players are connected to the game, and they should be willing and able to venture forth and roleplay with as many people as possible, using their characters to generate plots and as a tool for RP.

List in your application how often you log in a week (how many hours a day, how many days a week, the general time periods (like 8am-noon PST, or 6pm-midnight EST)) so that the RPA can know when you'd usually be online, how often you'd be able to roleplay the character, and when they might be able to roleplay test you should you make it to the second round.

7) Who ARE you, anyway?

Beyond activity, the RPA might need to know a little more about who you are and what you've accomplished, to get a good idea of your experience. How long have you been MUSHing in general? Where have you played before? Ever held positions like a Force User or a Feature Character that required an application/testing process for a special character which was used as a tool for RP? Ever been awarded for your roleplay achievements? How long have you played -this- MUSH, and what have you accomplished here in that time? It might also be a good idea to include somewhere what your IC and OOC thoughts on important issues are, like the Force, combat, player killing, consentual roleplay, things of that nature. If you have roleplay logs on the internet that demonstrate your skills, list the URL, but be sure to point out any one or two you think are especially worth reading. Don't send logs in as attachments, please.

8) Anything you SHOULDN'T do?

Don't bash on people. If you want to say you'd be active, tell the RPA the times you usually connect and how often you could play. Don't say something like, "I'd be more active than who you've got now, they suck." or anything else that might betray you're going into this with a negative attitude, that wouldn't be able to work with your peers once hired, or that you can't conduct yourself on a professional level.

Don't involve people in your application without asking them first. Nothing can sink an application faster than having the whole premise based on the actions of one individual who, when asked by the RPA, says they want nothing to do with the plot and that they never gave their permission to be included in it in the first place.

Don't turn in the same application over and over, if you can help it. If your jedi app didn't get approved last time, you aren't doing yourself any favors submitting the exact same thing a second time. Look over what you sent in before, and see if it couldn't benefit from a reorganization or reformatting. Rework it enough to where it's up to date, maybe even put a new spin on it, if you think that'd help. Remember, you want the RPA to know you're creative and full of fresh ideas, and this is a great place to start.

Don't apply for one thing, then turn around and apply for the opposite next time around without including an explanation about why you've changed your mind. If you wrote a Light Jedi application last time, but this time you're writing a Dark Jedi application (especially for the same character as before), there needs to be some kind of IC reason behind the change in motivations that you can explain to the RPA to justify the flip-flop. OOCly just wanting to be any kind of jedi available isn't going to be enough. :)

See also: General RPA App FAQ and Feature App FAQ