20 years of X-Project - Eva

[xp_daytripper]

From the Netherlands, Eva joined us in 2011, when she took on Sooraya Qadir. She then added Hope Abbott in 2012 and Sharon Friedlander in 2015. Sharon was let go in 2020, but Sooraya and Hope are still going strong. Eva is also a mod.

1) What brought you to X-Project?

I was looking up some information about an X-men character and I stumbled across the wiki. Then I discovered it was part of an RPG and I ended up reading the entire game twice. I felt drawn to how Sooraya was written and after gathering up some courage I wrote, got info and ended up joining X-Project when I apped Sooraya. A couple of months later I apped Hope and I have played both ever since.

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

The fact that I'd have Sooraya and Hope yelling at me in my head all the time in case I ever left?

Writing Sooraya, Hope and their world, together with other people, is a big reason of course, but the biggest thing is that XP is simply a community that has become important to me. It's one of the places in the world where I feel at home and accepted, who walked with me through some of the most difficult times in my life. Both the real and even the fictional community.

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

For me there isn't really one moment stuck with me. But the things that have stayed with me mostly for Hope are the moments I can put her into her power. Where she engineered her escape plan to escape from the Archduke or even managed to maneuver around him. The moments when she becomes a true player in the game of power, in her own unique style.

( Hope makes her move )

For Sooraya the moments that stuck with me mostly are the ones that explore what the spiritual dimension in her life means to hear. Sharing what it did to her to have to kill during Genosha, her doubts about her faith after the shift from Phase 1 to Phase 2 and finding faith again after her visions of Yvette after nearly getting strangled by Toad.

( Finding faith )

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

The imagery in many logs that Tap wrote with Haller doing mental work. The imagery there in particular. Rachel's death during the Genosha arc and the responses of the people involved hit me emotionally in the gut.

( Haller and Emma in Great Attractors )

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

The sheer variety of things that are possible to do and the unexpected paths things sometimes take. It can be both a joy, but also very challenging.

20 years of X-Project - Mack

[xp_daytripper]

Mack joined X-Project in July 2010, taking on Jean Grey and then the irrepressible Molly Hayes (who at 12 was the youngest character in the game). She still has her two girls, with Molly having aged up a bit in Asgard and the original Jean being killed off in the Dark Phoenix Saga and a Phase 2 version being introduced. Mack is also one of our artists and makes some pretty awesome vids as well, which you can find here.

1) What brought you to X-Project?

I saw an ad for the game on Hollow Art. I was looking for a new game and missed role playing.

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

The community and the world building.

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

The Dark Phoenix Saga, Hotel California, Fury Said to a Mouse, Genosha

( Hotel California )

(full log here)

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

Genosha

( Genosha Aftermath - Jean and Charles )

(full log here)

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

World Building, fan art, plot sessions.

20 years of X-Project - Ben

[xp_daytripper]

Ben is another of the veterans, having first joined X-Project in 2003 with Shiro Yoshida/Sunfire. He picked up Jay Guthrie/Icarus in 2004 and Mark Sheppard/DJ in 2006. He left in 2009 but returned in 2014 with Miles Morales, just in time for the relaunch. He took on Quentin Quire/Kid Omega and Everett Thomas/Synch in 2015; Miles and Everett are now available for apps, and Ben has recently acquired Julio Richter/Rictor, who he is bringing in soon.

1) What brought you to X-Project?

I've loved the X-Men since I was a kid collecting the trading cards and watching the Fox cartoon. I'd started playing LJ-based RPGs shortly before X2 came out, so when the film was released, I really wanted to play in one set in those movies. I found XP just by looking around LJ and tried to apply (for Nate Grey lol) in the summer of 2003, but the mods had vanished so no one was reviewing apps. I tried again a few months later, when I was in a Harry Potter game with several XP players who encouraged me to.

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

It's as close as I'll ever get to writing X-Men comics! But really, it's my primary creative outlet, and I really like writing with friends. It's much more satisfying than writing alone.

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

Quentin's "death" in Psi War. It was a huge turning point for him, to pay the ultimate cost because it was the right thing to do, in a suitably dramatic superhero way.



(TW: character death)( Quentin saves the day )

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

I think the first time I was floored by a plot was Thermopylae. It was one of the biggest (if not the biggest) X-Men team plots up to that point, and all the parts came together seamlessly. Even though Cable was the main character, everyone got a chance to shine and show why the X-Men are a great team.

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

The players! I've been in several similarly structured RPGs, but I've never made friendships like I have in this game.

20 years of X-Project - Cai

[xp_daytripper]

Cai joined X-Project in 2010, taking on the enfant terrible of XP, Jean-Paul Beaubier/Northstar, and then Wade Wilson/Deadpool in 2010 and the teenage version of Clint Barton/Hawkeye in 2012. With the relaunch she brought back JPB and Wade, and killed off Clint, replacing him with his adult counterpart in 2015 and bringing in Theresa Cassidy/Siryn in 2018. Currently she has Clint and Terry and Wade is now a modsock. Cai is also a mod.

1) What brought you to X-Project?

A friend of mine kept raving about the game, its stability, the quality of the writers involved, the multitude of characters who could be apped, and the variety of powers available. Having come off of several different HP games, one right after the other and each lasting a year or less, I was very interested in a game with staying power.

Also, when I mentioned being interested in Jean-Paul Beaubier, my friend said, "No, that's a bad idea, everyone will hate him."

My response, obviously, was, "Challenge accepted." :)

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

The strength of the relationships both IC and OOC. I'm one of those people who struggles with bouts of writer's block and depression - XP is the only game I've ever been in where I felt like I could take the breaks I needed when I needed them without losing everything I'd worked on up until then.

People are friendly, understanding, and virtually endlessly patient, especially when real life rears its ugly head with its many, varied difficulties. It helps that XP is my happy place. It's where I come to write fun things to take my mind off of unpleasantness IRL and where I vent to friends who actually understand.

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

Genosha as an arc stuck with me pretty firmly, but my favorite parts were when Wade "abandoned" Doug and dove out a window to escape capture (then rebooted after "dying") and the part where Wade and MA met "Death" (or maybe just an MA-generated construct of an aspect of death). Also, Terry and Allison during the crab plot, that was wonderful. And probably my favorite Clint thing I've written is Along Came A Spider (Natasha's intro plot). It was just such a seamless thing with an amazing group of writers.

( Along Came A Spider )

(a href= "https://xp-logs.dreamwidth.org/3790627.html#cutid1">read the full log here)

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

There was a bit in the group log after DPS where Gabriel's asking about bb!Clint and Artie just sort of shakes his head... honestly, it was such an elegant way of communicating such a devastating piece of information. That's literally always stuck with me since I read it. Also the entirety of Emma and Namor during the Halloween fiasco.

( Brand New World )

(read the full log here)

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

The variety of writing styles, topics, tropes, genres - anyone can find something to read in XP. I love writing with this group of people, the constant sharing of ideas and inspiration, just having people to throw information at sometimes. It's a joy to work with everyone here.

20 years of X-Project - Mo'

[xp_daytripper]

Mo' (aka Maureen) joined X-Project in its first year, back in 2003, with Clarice Ferguson/Blink. During her time she has played Dani Moonster (2004) and a teenaged Matt Murdock/Daredevil (2011). Clarice survived the relaunch, but Baby!Matt did not - he was replaced with the adult version we know and love currently in the game.

1) What brought you to X-Project?

Dex. This is probably a recurring answer, but he posted about XP on his LJ, and I went to check it out, saw some of the people in it and thought that I wanted to be a part of that. So I started an application.

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

Dex. No, not really :) But it is the people. I'm here for my friends, for the creative writing, for the characters and their stories.

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

After all these years so much blurs together, but one moment that has always stood out was during the Masque plot in P1 where Clarice makes the decision to mercy-kill all of Masque's victims. X-Men don't kill, but despite that tenant, as a medical professional she breaks it to do what's right.

( TW: Body horror and death )

(full log here)

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

Again, so many that blur together. All of Genosha. Really, all our big game- wide plots. The plotting, the coordination to get everyone tagging, the writing. you don't see anything like it anywhere else.

( Genosha breakout )

(full log here)

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

The creativity and the people. How we work together to make this our game. Even when we disagree (now), we can disagree and commit and move forward and make it work. The relationships we've built in and out of game. There's nothing like it anywhere else. It's not just a game, but a community.

20 Years of X-Project - Sam

[xp_daytripper]

Sam joined the XP crew in 2012 with Angelica Jones/Firestar (who had the shortest ever time between players, 2 weeks) and then Topaz the same year. They took on a Phase 2 version of Alex Summers/Havok in 2015 and returned Angelica to the wild in 2018. They are also a mod.

1) 1) What brought you to X-Project?

A random Google search during my X-Men fanfiction era (it didn't last long). It was something hyper-specific that doesn't actually exist in canon (I think someone's birthday?) so the XP wiki fooled me for a minute into thinking it was actual comic content. But then I kept reading, and it had been so long since I'd been part of any kind of roleplay, and I kind of missed it. (I also kind of thought I wouldn't get in XD)


2) What keeps you in X-Project?

The people, for sure. Writing with others is so much fun, and I've made so many good friends here over the years, I can't imagine leaving. I can write anywhere, but finding good people to write with and who are also awesome is rare. And I honestly can't imagine where I'd be without the people I met here

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

Alex - Definitely him and Scott reuniting. It was early on, but it was a great moment. I always love writing big emotions, and those were some big emotions.

( Summers Family Reunion )

Topaz - Stepping up and taking charge of things during Colors of Horror. I've spent so long writing her being a follower that writing her as a leader was a huge change, and I was so proud of her.

( Topaz takes charge )

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

Death scenes during Dark Phoenix, but especially the students. They were so hard to read and so well written.

Lorna and Warren confrontation during Morningstar.

Amanda, MA, and Doug log after Colors of Horror.

All the Garrison moments after he came back from the Brotherhood (including the journal conflict)

Laurie's defection and the aftermath.

There's a lot, I can't pick one. So many talented people <3

( Paying the Piper )

(read the full log here)

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

Sorry about the repeat answer, but it's definitely the people again. Anyone can start an RP game, but it takes really special people to keep it going, and there are a lot of really special people here, or have been here over the years. It's such a great and welcoming place, and I'm proud to have been part of it for so long <3

20 Years of X-Project - Isaura

[xp_daytripper]

Isa joined X-Project in 2018, with Alani Ryan/Loa, and then brought Ban Hamill/Match in recently in 2023. She's also made herself invaluable on the Wiki. <3

1) What brought you to X-Project?

I'd come across X-Project in my teen years while googling Laurie Collins, and had kinda looked back every few years, but was too anxious to think about applying seriously. I was finishing uni and looking for a stable RPG before starting my "adult" life. Seeing that XPRPG was still running, I thought I'd try my hand at writing with everyone.

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

The players and the plans. I'm really invested in a number of building character arcs/plotlines as both a person trying to do those things and knowing that some people are doing things, even if it's not specifics. The community is really amazing, and I'm so happy I was able to join and meet everyone. It's a great push to work on my writing and continue to learn and grow.

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

I'm going to take a moment to toot own horn and motion to the Alani & Namor making Atlantis research plans log, following eXcalibur coming into re-existence. Especially this little excerpt:

( Alani and Namor )

This is kinda one of the first moments I got to show that Alani being sunny and bright is a choice that she makes at every turn, not just a given or due to naiveté. It was something that I got to play with of her having a bad reaction to, planning to put her boundaries first, and it kinda just helped to start setting up Alani as not a complete push over, even though she might continue to come across as one. I loved writing it and how Walks responded, which turned to the really fun point of getting to have her learn about Atlantis.

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

For a log moment, I have to go with Walks and Ben's Arthur and QQ talk. Really the entire log was amazing, especially after both muses had been a bit scarce in the game. It was a treat to see the progress of the X-Factor office under QQ's rule and how it plays with Arthur "Paycheck?" Centino. To pick favorites, while I adored the entire log, this excerpt specifically lives stuck with me, and I think about it.

( Arthur and Quentin )

I love Walks continual exploration of Arthur, what his luck is and does, and Ben's QQ reading of him and the assessment of Arthur was so good. Both players made such a vivid image together. Seeing this development playout was really great, and I can't wait to see what they do next.

For a one line xp-communication that lives rent free in my head, Fi's text to Kevin during Operation: Kefauver, holds my heart. I said this in discord but Aisy did an amazing little reveal of this information, because mentally I placed Felicia in a dark room after the meeting, a sliver of moonlight as the only light setting as she tells someone something she hasn't had the chance to fully process or face, especially as their world skews a little more abnormal practically every day. Such a small thing that made such a big impact and showed something about Felicia we hadn't been able to see until then.

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

So I've already said the people, but going back to that: the people. I've made some really great friends here, and being able to write with them, and continue to build this little game's world together is something that has been really meaningful to me, as life continues to be wild and unpredictable. I'm looking forward to finally getting some things on screen that I've been kicking around since I joined, so fingers crossed this is the year for that.

20 Years of X-Project - Seraph

[xp_daytripper]

Seraph joined in 2003, taking on the "played-for-a-hot-minute" Jubilation Lee/Jubilee until 2006. She took on Laurie Collins/Wallflower in 2006 and then reapplied for Jubilee in 2008 and then acquired Maya Lincoln-Lopez/Echo in 2015 for the relaunch. Laurie was transformed into a villain in 2022 and Seraph is currently planning to app for a new character.

1) What brought you to X-Project?

Dex. He sold me on the idea of the game. I'd been doing a little RPing over Livejournal in a couple of Star Trek focussed games. (One where I played the Traveller, weirdly enough. ) I was mostly known for my Subreality stuff and for Jubilee fanfics but at the time there was already a Jubilee player so we'd been talking about me maybe picking up a lesser-known character, turning them into my own thing. Then the Jubilee player left and the rest is history, so they say.

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

Inertia. But I joke. I'm still having fun even after all this time, and I'm still finding new ways to write and all the people online that I love are here, so why wouldn't I stay? I think if I ever got to the point where I felt like I was phoning it in I'd hang up my keyboard and mouse but I'm not there yet, not even with Jubilee and she's my longest-running character. There's always something new to do, or some storyline that makes me think 'Man, I wanna play in that sandpit'

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

There are too many to mention, a bunch of the Genosha stuff. But honestly, the most recent one would have had to be the last fight between Laurie and Darcy [in Arise X-Man]. That was so brutal and raw and neither I nor Tink shied away from making it as honest and real as we could. I like to think we did a good job of it.

( Arise X-Man | Cup of Tea )

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

There was a scene between Paige and Yvette at the beginning of when Rossi joined the game [Ed. note - Rossi re-joined in 2006 after an absence] where Yvette is in the woods and Paige is, it's been ages since I read this but I think was luring her in with apples. The sheer brilliance of the descriptive language used and this feeling of peace that both Rossi and Aisy created with their words, it still to this day is one of my favorite scenes. When you can make me picture something as a whole like a comic book page, I think that's brilliance.

( The Velveteen Rabbit )

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

Writing with my friends, honestly. We joke sometimes about how so many of us are old comic book fanficcers and ancient but the sheer amount of time this game has been around means that there are connections there that I don't know that other games have. I've known some people here for more than twenty years, with all the drama and love that comes along with that. But it's the chance to get to know new people as well and write with them. There's always something exciting or new to do, even in the downtimes when we're all feeling a little tired or having a hard time IRL. I'd like to think we'd still be doing this in another twenty years, although I'm sure there are people who would throw shoes at me for mentioning that.

20 years of X-Project - Aisy

[xp_daytripper]

Aisy is one of the "oldest" players, having been part of X-Project in its original incarnation in 2002. She originally brought Paige Guthrie/Husk in after the (re)launch in May 2003, and also played Jeanne-Marie Beaubier/Aurora briefly. In 2006 she introduced Sofia Mantega-Barret/Wind Dancer to be part of X-Force until 2013. When X-Project relaunched in 2015, Aisy retired Paige, agreeing to have her become the modsock "Valkyrie", and brought in Felicia Hardy/Black Cat.

1) What brought you to X-Project?

I first came to X-Project on the trail of some players from a Harry Potter RPG, and for reasons that don't need exploring at this juncture, I have remained, attached as a pain in the ass and general low key chaos bringer.

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

Spite. (I mean, I also met both my platonic soulmate and my non-platonic soulmate here, so that too.)

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

Couldn't choose, honestly; I love the relationships I've built with Felicia. Romantic, friendships, found family, all of them. Kevin and Felicia's weird uncle/dad thing, Gabriel as the best friend and possible brother. Jubilee, her forever bestie, and North, her home. Alani and Topaz, best girls, Sarah one in the making. Wanda and Clint. I just love the connections this little hissy cat has made, and my writing is far superior getting to work alongside their players. (Warren, you are so missed)

[Ed. On that note, this log from Operation: Bat Country with Topaz and Fi]

( RV relaxation )

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

Please insert link to all of fucking Siege Perilous. It is beauty it is grace it will punch you in the face.

[Ed. Let's go with the log opening Havine's universe]

( Well, dis is a shitshow. )

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

lol, I'm going to answer "people" just like everyone else. I love that I can have a bad day and come onto Discord to rant or get some answers. I love the people I met here came to our wedding. I love the support, both personal and creatively. We're a mess, but we're our mess and that's pretty great.

20 years of X-Project - Dex

[xp_daytripper]

Dex joined X-Project in 2003 with Nathaniel Essex, before dropping him (by mod request as he was out-arguing Charles) and bringing Remy LeBeau/Gambit on board in early 2004 and then Garrison Kane/Dominion in 2006. With the relaunch he killed off Remy (literally!) and brought in Kevin Sydney/Changeling. He is directly responsible for the Wiki, X-Force and more plots than you can poke a stick at. Oh, and he was a mod.

1) What brought you to X-Project?

Back in the ancient days of comic book fanfic, there was a central site called C-FAN. The owner Kielle, who was a big part of the community, had brought up this game that had just started. It included names like Alasdair Watson, Lady Amethyst and Andrew Wheeler who, years before, had been big names in the X-Writers community of comic fanfic. Having literally no experience in any kind of online RP, but knowing all three to a limited degree, I took a look and sent in a submission for Nathaniel Essex because why make anything easy? At the time, Dex-Con was still at its height so once I came on, it was easy to recruit friends to join. And then they kicked me out, so it says a lot about me.

So I was not unhappily gone that spring, and then that August, as Dex-Con rolled around, a lot of the comicfic community who were still in started to talk about plots and ideas and asked me for help. The original Psylocke player, Jazz, asked me to sock Essex for a couple of logs she needed shortly and between both, I rejoined following all kinds of interesting sturm und drang. Been here other than a couple of hiatuses ever since.

2) What keeps you in X-Project?

A collection of film negatives depicting acts so heinous that the world itself would burn should they ever be released. Actually, I hate to sound glib - no, wait, I love being glib. But really XP has long been a mix of a regular writing outlet for me and a community of old friends. It may sound a little sad, but I've been doing this so long, I'm not sure how I'd actually replace it. It provides the outlet that fic used to for ideas and most importantly, adaptations which is by and large the majority of my plots. It's tremendously easy to sit down in a chat or over a beer and talk about what our fictional characters are going to do this week.

3) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that you wrote?

Entirely too many. I've written novels worth of words over the years in logs. The most recent piece I liked was in the Powers Swap event. Because I suffer from all kinds of masochism, I took over MA's precognitive powers for Kane and then asked for volunteers for future events and ended up stitching them together using elements of Kane as the filter mechanism. Which ended up telling the future of seven characters through lyrics from Canadian Juno winning songs, 70s-80s Canadian children's shows, Canada's classic 'Heritage Moments' series and, of course, songs from The Tragically Hip.

( The Future Is Canadian )

Yeah, sometimes I like an unnecessary challenge. Whatever. Kane now has a wolf. Does your character have a wolf?

I didn't think so.

4) What's a moment that has really stuck with you that someone else wrote?

Fucking hell, there's even more of those. One of the truly great things about this game is the sheer depth, range and scope of the work people do here. I actually have a list of about 30 logs that are my 'just need to distract myself by rereading'. So to take one example, the capper for my plot Operation: Siege Perilous I thought was tremendous work between Mack and Amanda Sichter.

( Emma and Jean )

5) What is something about X-Project that you really like/enjoy?

The deep sense of warmth and satisfaction it immediately provides. Oh wait, no, that's heroin. I'm a person who deeply needs things to do. Idle time is not something I manage well. X-Project provides a creative structure as well as a social network, which is hugely important. It also lets me share ideas, and anyone who knows me knows I always have ideas. All the ideas. Too many ideas.

Far too many ideas. It's the reason I didn't get to go to any of the really good schools.

The writing outlet, the creativity, the collaborative aspect, the dumb chat arguments and AU smut, the odd sense of satisfaction in finishing a wiki update, and that feeling posting that final log of a plot and waiting on tenterhooks for someone to comment on the journals or in the Discord about it... yeah, there's not much about it I don't really like//enjoy.