Five Things Go Wrong, the RPG - OOC/Recruitment

[kizkiz]

News and Links

Five Things Go Wrong, The RPG

News​

I posted scene 2.2. Lots more went wrong this round. It'll be a tough one to get it all resolved, but I'm sure you all are up to the challenge!

IC Thread - Scene 2.2

Notes about Scene 2.2

Overview Links

• "Resolved Unresolved Scenes" - A place to post about inactive scenes or random scenes or solo scenes, etc.
• People, Places, Scenes, etc

• The Nord Setting

• Game Overview

• Frequently Asked Questions

• Character Sheet

Characters

1. Tamilla Strider by Deckrect - She is the incarnation of Lust, Beauty, and Freedom. Tamilia has had the Blood of Eld for a long time, she just didn't know what to do with it. It's dominated her entire life.
2. Kosta Knoton by LucianDevine - He is the incarnation of Lightning, Thunder, and Storms. Kosta is an ex-blacksmith who inherited the Blood of Eld when his father fell ill. Now the Eld calls him to action.
3. Teutates “ToT” Orphaneal by HotCider - He is the incarnation of Gluttony, Strength, and War. He is the dread, one-armed swordsmen of nightmare. Rumor is that he cuts down women and children with the same reservations as a farmer has when reaping wheat at harvest time. Some even say he eats the hearts of those he kills!
4. Vanora Brightwood by MsAmative - She is the incarnation of Nature, Earth, and Comfort.
5. Marcus Blair by sodalitashttps://forum.literotica.com/posts/76942860/ - He is the incarnation of Spirit, Transition, and Protection. Marcus has visited the clearing at the end of the path and sent many more there.

Note: the goal was 5 characters. We are tentatively on hold for more characters, but you can still submit and I'll put you on the waiting list. It's possible characters will die and/or writers will disappear.

Wait List

• Lyden Snow by Stalzyn - Incarnation of ice, water and solitude.

Scene Lists​

Scene 2.2: Rats, puddles, and blood!
Players: Kosta [unhurt], Tot [unhurt], Vanora [hurt], Captain Blair [unhurt]
Epics: The Pied Piper
Elites: Nightmare Rat Hoard (foe), Terminus Mercury Puddles (environmental), Knight of the Veil(neutral) [maimed-1]
Extras:
Objective:

• (scene) Prevent rat nightmares from escaping
• (scene) Cleanup the Terminus Mercury Acid Puddle things.
• (scene) Keep the Knight of the Veil from dying
• (scene) Resolve the Pied Piper one way or another?

Scene 2: The Pied Piper
Players: Kosta [unhurt], Tot [unhurt], Vanora [hurt], Captain Blair [unhurt]
Epics: The Pied Piper
Elites: Knight of the Veil [maimed]
Extras: 6 Ratkin
Objective:

• (scene) Figure out what's going on.
• (adventure) Find out where the "Lost Boys of Vos" are and/or who is taking them.
• (bonus) Find out what happened to the girl from your vision.

Scene 1: The Court of the Iron Baron
Players: Tot [unhurt], Kosta [unhurt], Vanora [unhurt]
Epics: The Iron Baron
Elites: Aegar, Jerico, Sythe
Extras: The Master Exchequer, The Chief Scribe, and The Spymaster
Objective:

• (scene) Join the Third House ran by Master Aegar (patron).
• (adventure) Find out where the "Lost Boys of Vos" are and/or who is taking them.
• (bonus) Find out what happened to the girl from your vision.
• (bonus) Find out what happened to Reginald.
• (bonus) Find out what happened to Grandmaster Knoton (Kosta's father).
• (bonus) Find out what happened to Lady Yonna.

 

[kizkiz]

People, Places, Scenes

Important Figures​

• Iron Baron, Epic - The Iron Baron is the leader of the 5 Cities. He is a giant asshole who is powerful enough to keep the many Elites in the Nord in check. He has a giant sword called Oathbreaker that can cut an Elite in half, if they've broken an oath.
• Grandmaster Jerico, Elite - First Sword for the First House of mercenaries or adventuring group permitted by the Iron Baron. He is a bad ass with his twin rapiers.
• Grandmaster Sythe, Elite - Not much is known about the leader of the Second House of mercenaries, other than it is very sneaky and hard to pin down. Sythe uses ranged blade weapons for the most part.
• Count Balatros Vos, Elite - Lord of the city and lands of the Vos plateau. He is young and brash, having just inherited the lands and title when his father died from Syphilus induced madness (throwing himself off the plateau screaming about the little ones chasing him).
• Viscount Alexi Oolong and Viscountess Larissa Oolong, Extras - Married not too long ago, Alexi is in his 40s while Larissa is in her late 20s. It was an arranged marriage between the Oolong family (e.g. Alexi) and the Bergamont family (e.g. Larissa), a Viscount to Count Cedric Rhist the III. Alexi is noted for his quick temper, love of food, and good luck. Larissa is known for being impulsive, a naturalist, and bleeding heart; although rumor has it she suffers terrible nightmares. Alexi has 1 young child from his previous marriage, a young boy Amos. Larissa is viewed by most as a trophy wife, baring the loss of Alexi's boy.

 

[kizkiz]

Game Overview: Rules, Meta-Plot, etc

Five Things Go Wrong, The RPG

Overview​

This is a light-weight, story-driven role playing game. I will be it's Game Master (GM). My role is to throw challenges at you and set the scenes. I don't plan to play, unless there is a shortage of interested players. There are rules to keep the progression of the characters, the challenges, and the setting on a path from wimpy to god-mode. I want this to be open and free form with some fence posts to keep the aspects of RPG still there. There will be 1 scene per week unless a current scene is still not resolved. The aim is to resolve the first adventure in 2-3 months. You are expected to post at least every other day. You should work with each other and off each other's posts.

The setting for this story is medieval fantasy...anime! Typical DnD doesn't work very well in these threads, so I want a way to be a GM but not have to roll tons of dice. Here's how the system works.

As a 1st level Anime Character, you can beat:

• 0-2 extras per scene without taking any damage.
• 3-4 extras per scene, but you will be hurt next scene.
• 5-16 extras per scene, you will be hurt for the next 2 scenes and lose something.
• 17+ extras per scene, you will get captured, maimed, lose something, or die.

For example, a thief could hurl knives and kill the 2 goblins in front of the treasure chest. No problems. A fighter could slice through 3 bandits on the road with his swords, but he'd take a spear to the arm for his effort. A wizard could hurl magic missiles at four rapid foxes hounding her, but not before they maul her face (lose good looks).

You have the option of taking damage instead of beating an extra. This would allow you to hold off on using up attacks for strategic or story reasons.

Damage works like this:

• Unhurt - No problem.
• Hurt - You have some wounds that you should write about like blood gushing from a shoulder wound.
• Maimed - If you get hurt while hurt, you become maimed. It's up to you, but you are losing something permanently. It could be your hand, eye, beauty, or treasure. An Extra can leap in front of you at the last minute, sacrificing their life for your injury. You can deflect the blow that would have taken an eye, but lose your treasured magical item in the process. You can lose a hand and hope your a Healer is willing to regenerate it for you. You can try to find a way to reverse your problem (plot hook). Or you can just roll with it. You stay hurt for 2 scenes. You write what happens.
• Captured - If you get hurt after being maimed (same or next scene), then you are captured or otherwise disabled for an additional scene. It's up to you to write what happens.
• Death - If you get hurt while being captured (e.g. during a rescue or knocked out), it's game over.

You gain a level each time you survive an adventure. You will gain magical items and/or special abilities along the way. Each adventure has 5 Things Go Wrong. Put another way, there will be 5 obstacles of great difficulty to overcome. If someone dies or is inactive at the end of an adventure, a new writer may join the group. Each time you gain a level, you can either increase the number of extras you can kill before getting hurt or gain an extra Adventure ability (see below).

Types of Obstacles:

• Extra - These are the minions, cannon fodder, annoying traps, or other obstacles designed to wear you down and show up how cool you are.
• Elite - These require the use of a special ability or taking one for the team (e.g. getting hurt). These creatures are basically your equal. They could be other heros opposed to your progress or monsters of exceptional power. Other obstacles or situations could be elite like a complicated trap or survival situation.
• Epic - These require the use of special abilities and/or items gained through adventure. Still, it's possible people will get maimed, captured, or die.
• Eternal - A divine creature that is eternal. They can only be hurt, maimed, captured, or killed when they willingly enter into a fight with another Eternal. In doing so they risk their state of being. The Elder Gods were eternal until they were killed, maimed, and hurt by other Eternals such as each other and He Who Dwells In His Shadow. Also known as "The Eld."

Character Creation​

You play as an Elite in a world of Extras. You were born with the blood of the Eld in your veins. Long ago the Veil between Creation and the Labyrinth was torn. The Elder Gods descended from the Heavens to war against He Who Dwells In His Shadow and repair the Veil. Most of the Gods died or were so diminished in power they could not ascend after defeating He Who Dwells In His Shadow. The Veil healed some on its own over the course of the last 999 years, but still holes remain.

Creation is where you live. It's the land of living things and normalcy. Flowers grow and birds sing. It's a merry place where parents raise their children, and rainbows follow every storm. Before the Great War, there was no magic at all. With the fall of the Elder Gods ("The Eld"), their divine essence was cast across Creation. Thus Extras was able to by-pass the normal limits placed upon Extras when the Elder Gods made Creation. And so Elites and Epics were born into Creation.

The Labyrinth is where the dark, unwanted things were put after the gods made Creation. Hey you have to break a few eggs to make an omelet, right? It is an eternal maze designed to make leaving difficult. In order to make creatures want to enter the maze and keep wondering around it, the gods put tons of cool treasures and artifacts. At the center of the Labyrinth is something of Eternal power. The first few layers have mutated beasts, minor monsters, and the dead that refuse to die. It gets worse the deeper you go in. Those places were the Veil is still torn most often lead to the first few layers.

The Heavens is the place the gods made to amuse themselves after they grew bored with Creation. Its a place of dreams realized, wishes fulfilled, and desires fed. Its always better than everything you want it to be. Most of the dead rest here for a year and a day before being reborn back into Creation.

The Veil is a eldritch membrane of the Eld that prevents physical passage between the Heavens, Creation, and the Labyrinth. The Gods pierced the Veil between Creation and Heaven, but were more careful and thus only a few secret, guarded places ever existed. These Heaven Gates are hard to find and use. The tears between Creation and the Labyrinth become dark, terrible places tainted by the Labyrinth. Knowledge of how to make these tears was spread amongst creation during the Great War of the Eld.

There are no more Eternal beings in all of existence. Some Epics have snuck into the Heavens and the Labyrinth seeking to become Eternal, but none have yet succeeded. All with the blood of the Eld feel the call of Eternity: to do great things, to reclaim their lost essence, and become once more Eternal.

Roles in the game:

• Tank - Someone who stands on the front lines, takes damage, and distracts foes. They aren't very good at dishing out damage, but they are resistant to being hurt. Tanks start with 1 extra Adventure ability that is defensive in nature (e.g. negates damage somehow).
• Melee - Someone who stands on the front lines and dishes out tons of damage. They take more damage, but they can kill like no other. Melee start the game with a magical weapon. It can be sacrificed if the Melee would become Maimed. It's also really cool looking and can have 1 special ability. For example, a flame sword would be really handy when killing the Elite Frost Giant.
• Ranged - Someone who hides behind others so they can do cool things. They might not deal more damage than a Melee, but they can do tons of useful things. This could be a thief who strikes from the shadows, a mage who conjures lightning, or a ranger who fires arrows at people's eyeballs. Ranged start the game with an item with 2 special abilities. This item can't be sacrificed to prevent becoming Maimed. If you are Captured, it's automatically lost forever.
• Healer - Someone who puts others before their own well being. Their goal in life is to keep others from dying. They suck at hurting people, but they are really good at keeping others from being hurt. This could be a paladin who heals with a touch or a cleric who calls upon the Eld. It could even be an alchemist that mixes potions. Healers have an extra Scene ability to either move someone from Hurt -> Unhurt. Or they can move Maim -> Hurt but Healer is also Hurt (doesn't work on themselves as a result). Healer has a penalty that they can only beat 1 Extra before becoming Hurt.

Special Abilities​

These come from the Eld in your blood. It's the divine essence in your veins that everyone else wants. It grows in power being doing epic things that impact others in existence. The Eld demands action and so those who possess it are unable to sit idle as life passes them by. All special abilities should be thematically consistent. If you have the blood of the Eld of Fire, they should all be fire abilities.

• Flavor - You start with 3 special abilities that have no impact in the game other than to provide flavor for your posts.
• Scene - You start with 2 special abilities that can be used 1x per scene. They are the only way to kill Elites and to have a chance against Epic challenges.
• Adventure - You start with 1 super, awesome power equal to a deus ex machina. You can only use this once per game, and it should only be used for a really cool. Anime characters love to power up and "go all out" when things are looking really, really bad. Why they don't go all out the whole time is anybody's guess. This ability may or may not be sufficient to take down an Epic challenge, but it will always defeat an Elite challenge. It can also be used to write some clever way to keep yourself from being maimed, captured, or dying. It's a one-time use, but it's effects will be spectacular. You should decide if it's offense or defense in nature. With GM permission, they might even be allowed to kill an Epic. As you level up, what the GM considers an Extra will change.
  
• Character Sheet Bonuses - If your character sheet is 2,000 words or longer, well written, and contains at least 3 plot hooks, then you get 1 additional special ability. If your character sheet is less then 1,000 words or has no plot hooks, you will not be allowed to participate.

The Circle​

The Eld requires others to dwell with. Gods have pantheons they reside within, and Epics have a circle. A circle is a group of Epics bound together by pacts predating Creation. Before the fall of the Eld, you were all in the same pantheon together. The Eld whose power you posses all had sworn eternal, binding oaths of aid and succor. As such, your blood calls to each other. You are compelled to find each other and help each other. You feel a tug like magnets wherever you are.

As fate would have it, you were all born in the same area! You all know each other. When one is in need, the others feel a call in their hearts. To resist the call is to be Hurt. Sometimes you might have visions of what is happening to the other members of your Circle. These visions are murky and opaque, but make for good plot hooks or expedients.

The Blood of Eld​

There are two ways people come into possession of the Blood of Eld. Either they inherit it or they take it. Someone with the Blood of Eld can designate another to be their Heir. This ritual is unique but instinctive to any possessor. A Heir inherits a portion of the blood in the event of death. Killing someone with the Blood of Eld allows the killer to take a portion of that power as well. More power is taken if the person killing and being killed posses the same Blood of Eld. So, your character could either have inherited the power peacefully when your patron died or you could have killed someone with the blood and taken it yourself. Either way you ascended from being an Extra to becoming an Elite. This should be detailed in your character sheet.

All writers must possess different blood lines!

Skills and Professions​

• Choose 1 Profession. This helps flesh out who you were and what you can do. It should be useful when adventuring. It could be bandit, wizard, guard, ranger, alchemist, or whatever. This is a blanket, catch all that helps justify the things that you do. A city guard shouldn't compose a poem to make the stone giant cry, but they could shake down a local gang for some cash to buy a new sword.
• Choose 3 Skills. These are the types of areas you are awesome at. It should be specific and narrowly defined. Maybe you are an expert horse trainer or lock picker, etc. It will help provide color to challenges that come up. If you are really good at lock picking, the circle should turn to you if the situation presents itself. Beyond these three skills, you can be decent as long as it fits with your profession. Skills require equipment to be awesome at, so you need to specify the equipment as well, which can be lost or stolen.

All writers must possess different professions!

Extras​

You can write up to 2 extras into your background that you can use on quests, adventures, and overcoming obstacles. For example, maybe you found a wolf pup as a kid. The two of you grew up together, kill things together, and it's great. Wolfie will follow you around and can take out 1 extra per scene after which they are maimed or die. These extras can be useful little abilities in a package that will be fodder for the adventure. All heroes need extras that die and lend emotional depth to the story. Here you go!

An extra that provides utility, like a horse, is basically equal to an additional skill. An extra that provides combat support, like a bodyguard, is basically equal to a small, but vulnerable extra attack you can get per scene. They may get hurt, maimed, captured, or killed at any time. Another extra could target them or they could get caught up in the blast of a fireball.

Summary​

1. Choose 1 Role: Tank, Melee, Range.
2. Determine the Eld that you come from.
3. Choose Abilities: 3 flavor, 2 scene, 1 story
4. Choose 1 Profession.
5. Choose 3 Skills.
6. Choose 2 Extras.

Conditions of Play​

1. OOC. Do not OOC in the IC. We have an OOC for a reason. This thread is the OOC.
2. No drama. Some of you will get disappointed or upset when I refuse your character. Get over it. If you make a big whiny scene in this thread, then I will tell you to “Get over it,” and ask you to leave. If you persist to remain to cause trouble, then I will report you for harassment. Simple.
3. Fairness. I'm less concerned about being fair, as I am about creating a fun story adventure. This means dramatic tension, conflict, and plot arcs. I won't "cheat" and break the rules and neither should you. All GM decisions resolved in the In-Character thread are final. Feel free to PM me if you have questions. See #2 though. We are trying to make a story here.
4. Literacy. You need to be decent at grammar, reading comprehension, spelling, details, transitions, and descriptions. If you fail at any of these, then you won’t be in this game.
5. 1 paragraph or 300 word limit. No one should be one-lining in this game. No one. I do not like posts that look like the writer didn’t even try to write it. No exceptions.
6. Third Person, past-tense, semi-omnipotent view point. No telling us what character's you don't control think. Don't do what you can't do. Read and understand the rules.

 

[kizkiz]

Setting

(Under Development)

The Iron Barony - Realm of the Nord​

Overview
Before the fall of the Eld when monstrous things poured from the Labyrinth, people fled the dark places and sought refuge in the light. High above the Black Forest, they found a measure of security. The plateaus were large enough to sustain village life. The brave and foolish could venture below, repelling down the side of the plateau. After the fall of the Eld, the Black Forest remained a dangerous place to go. It's resources were vast, but so was the chance of death. Those who lived ascended back with riches and powers. One of these people was the Iron Baron, Lord Gavin Nord. He slew all who opposed him and consolidated power amongst the five cities. The Nord, or the northern most city, became the capital of the barony.

The Iron Baron's power over the five cities is absolute and enforced with strict laws. Here the letter of the law is absolute. There is no mercy. For those that follow the law, life is safe and prosperous. Disobedience opens the lands to strife and discord, which creates weakness. Weakness means death in this age, and so the Baron will not tolerate it.

Many aspects of life are structured, making personal freedom and creative expression within this realm is rare. The entire realm is rigid and militaristic, which manifests itself in the form of civil oppression and bureaucracy. There is an official or office policing every aspect of the populace, ensuring the status quo is maintained.

There is a very small middle class, which isn't common in other realms of the empire. In most realms the mercantile and guilder class has grown strong. With the recent invention of airships, merchants and experts are working their way into the Nord. Elsewhere in the Barony, the vast majority of folk live as serfs who work their Lord's lands and are seldom permitted to leave the confines of the fiefdom in which they serve.

By far the most common profession for non-nobles within the Barony is that of a soldier or guard, and the long military tradition of the barony pushes folk to excel at martial skills. Excellence in military skills is the quickest and easiest route to power and prestige within the Barony. Those who cannot fight tend to gravitate towards the mercantile and trades that support the military.

The ratio of career minded rogues (that is to say, those rogues who organize themselves into business-like entities and brotherhoods) is perhaps highest within the Iron Barony than in any of the other smaller realms of the empire. The larger realms, duchies and principalities, are located in areas were the Veil is no longer torn. Such large realms have many who no longer even believe the Veil was ever torn or that the Labyrinth exists. In the Nord, the folk know better.

The vast majority of citizens are common folk who are indentured to the barony directly, his four lords, or one of the knights of the realm. There are few "free people" amongst the lower classes. With the general appearance of a rising middle class throughout the empire over the past decades, the number of free men is increasing within the Barony, but very few of these are land owners, and so are not entitled to hold serfs under Nord law unlike the landed nobles who can.

The very nature of the Nord feudal system is such that in matters of a lord to a vassal, the Baron and his officials have very few rights or privilege with which to intervene. As long as the overlying laws of the Barony are not in themselves broken, titled lords and nobles are within their rights to dispense their own justice amongst their vassals and serfs as they deem fit.
Titles and positions are an important aspect of life within the militaristic realm of the Nor, and the Baron and his nobles are fond of granting titles, honors and medals (of some form or other) upon their subordinates which they deem worthy or who have excelled in some fashion. Since such bureaucratic titles are not generally hereditary in nature, the nobles are free to cast such positions around without having to worry about any long reaching effects. As such, there are numerous administrative and bureaucratic titles in use throughout the barony, many of which have not been employed since the founding of the Empire, and even several dozen positions which are unique to the Barony itself. However, very few of these titles hold any degree of meaning or effect outside of the realm.

All are equal under the law, and so unlike in some realms, all humans are treated the same. There is no gender, sexual, or other bias allowed. Females who have come to power have done so under their own power and authority. Life is hard in the Nord. All struggle for prosperity with the terrors of the Labyrinth always just around the corner. Prejudice and bias can not be afforded, unlike in the larger realms.

The Military​

The Baron keeps 3 Circles of mercenaries on retainer. Each mercenary company is a mixture of different professions and the common forces sent into the Dark Wood if required. Your Circle is one of these three mercenary companies.

The baron commands:

• 3 orders of knights, each is considered Epic.
• 3 units of calvary, each is lead by a lord and considered Elite when encountered en masse.
• 3 units of elite infantry, each is lead by a lord and considered Elite when encountered en masse.
• 3 units of archers, each is comprised of 30 Extras.
• 3 units of pike, each is comprised of 30 Extras.

There are three knightly orders. Each order is comprised of a captain, who is Elite, and 12 extras who together equal 2 additional Elites. The knightly orders are the greatest source of Baron Gavin's power in the realm and abroad.

• The Knights of Cold Iron - This order of knights owes fealty directly to Baron Gavin. They are brutal and efficient in executing every order that the Baron gives. They are lead by three Melee Elites who are peerless in their ferocity and prowess.
• The Knights of the Veil - This is a mystical order of Blade Singers. These are knights whose swords sing with the magic of the Eld. They specialize in commanding fire and earth in defense of the realm. The are the most esoteric of the orders. There ways are a mystery. Their loyalty to the Baron is unquestionable. They fix situations others would fear to even try.
• The Justicars - A justicar foreswears sexual and worldly possessions. They embrace the sword and shield as their only mates in life. They wander the realm righting wrongs, as defined by their unwavering code of justice. Their code defines their lives and deaths. The code is composed of more than five thousand sutras that describe every possible situation a justicar may encounter. Every justicar is required to know the entire code by heart. Living by the code makes choices simple: "If I follow the Code, I am just. If I do not, I am unjust." In compliance with the Justicar Code, there are no morally grey actions: every deed done falls clearly into right or wrong categories. Thus a justicar will defend a village of just farmers to her dying breath if they are being attacked by bandits, but she will kill every person in that village if they are found to be running a smuggling cartel. Due to the harsh nature of the Code, curiosity is a liability for a justicar: if she is required to kill a murderer, she does not wish to know anything that could potentially redeem him in her eyes.

The Land​

Each city of the Barony is upon a large plateau with access to an underground well. The soil is fertile, volcanic loam that gives large yields. Otherwise, it would be difficult to feed the population. Huge fields of golden grain can be seen stretching in all directions around the cities. Some parts have old mines and most are still in use today. Every year, the miners fear they will delve too deep and run right through the veil and into the Labyrinth. It hasn't happened yet.

There are a few light forest areas, which are kept by the nobility for hunting grounds. Poaching from these forests is punishable by death. From the capital in the north, the mighty Yadril River gushes from the depths of the earth and dives off the plateau into the Black Wood, marking the edge of civilization.

There are only three direct passages down into the Black Wood. There is a one-way system of transport over the Yadril waterfall in the capital, the northern most city. Two others which allow access back through a series of switch batches up the side of the two southern most plateaus. Each of these are fortified with twenty foot high walls and guarded by a unit of elite infantry and archers at all times.

For those with the Special Ability to access them, Ley Lines is the only reliable means of travel overland. In the larger realms in the heart of the empire, ship travel via the many rivers in the Heartlands is possible. Travel overland to the other realms otherwise is perilous. The network of ancient Ley Lines are mystical roads the sit slightly outside of Creation. Some believe they are through the Veil itself, but for those who can access them it is a safe way for caravans to move. Travel speed is much faster and safe. Human bandits and others who can access the Ley Lines still exist, but no nightmares from the Labyrinth have ever been sighted. Most who can access the Ley Lines have joined the Navigators Guild and enjoy a special status in all societies. A Navigator is welcomed by all nobles and always granted Guest Privilege, allowing a Navigator to stay in a lord's manor, enjoy the lord's protection, and the lord's food for as long as they should wish.

The Black Wood
There are some wild folk who live within the Wood. Humans are like weeds, and not all of them ascended to the Light. There are a few small bands the live as hunter gatherers within the Wood. They are all lead by an Elite, because otherwise they would be dead already. Such bands rarely get larger then twenty as its difficult to keep larger groups alive with the dark things that dwell in the Black Wood.

The Black Wood is an ancient forest, where the foliage is so dense that no light penetrates below. Instead there is a constant gloom that is somewhere between twilight and nightfall. The darkest places are where the Veil is still torn and the Labyrinth pours forth all manner of mutated beast, nightmare monsters, and the dead who refuse death. The Labyrinth taints the land and turns its wild and wicked. In places where the Labyrinth is strong, the vegetation antagonizes and even the ground can not be trusted. Still, great treasures and power can be gained. Sometimes such things are carried out of the Labyrinth with the terrors that have broken free. Other times glory must be sought within, where getting back out is as much of a challenge as surviving the inhabitants. The Labyrinth was designed to lure, trap, and confuse its residents and visitors alike.

The Cities​

The Nord
The northern most city. The plateaus are in a five pointed star with a bridge connecting to two other cities along the perimeter. It's the largest city containing 43,769 people according to the tax records and census bureau. The Baron's castle is large enough to accommodate a thousand retainers, servants, and guests. All three knightly orders have small keeps here where attendants, squires, and retainers dwell as well as the Knights themselves. Each knight also has an estate amongst one of the five plateaus as well.

Ellere
Located to the east of Nord, connected to Nord and Suland.

Rhist
Located to the west of Nord, connected to Nord and Vos.

Suland
Located to the southeast, connected to Ellere and Vos.

Vos
Located to the southwest, connected to Rhist and Suland.

History​

There had always been cities located on the plateaus, but they had been smaller and agrarian before the tearing of the Veil. During the Great War, most in the forests below fled to the highlands. One of the god's built the bridges to keep the people together. With the aid of the gods, they fought back against the nightmares of the Labyrinth. The Nord were a line of chiefs in one of the tribal peoples in the forest below. Their chief sought power and glory in the Black Wood and found it. He emerged and concurred the cities and made them his own. In doing so, his line has ruled ever since.

 

[kizkiz]

Frequently Asked Questions

How does fighting Elites work vs Extras vs Epics?
That's a good question. Elite are designed to be defeated by using a Scene Ability before that Elite uses one against you. It's more rock-paper-scissors. If you have a Scene Ability that is effective verse the Elite then you can defeat them. If the Elite uses an ability effective against you first, then you lose.

To your question, they are on two different tracks, but you could be hurt from the Extras and then get hurt from the Elite (because they used a Scene Ability on you). Elites also can have Adventure Abilities, so it can become like a game of Uno, where you'd better hope you (or someone in your party) can cancel their Adventure Ability before you get smoked.

How does equality work in the world?
In the Iron Barony, a man and women are equal under the law. So they have homosexual women in the military as easily as heterosexual males.

However, in the social status an Extra (peasants for example) is not equal to an Elite (e.g. Noble Lord).

If a noble does something stupid in public they might get whipped, if a peasant does it they could die. If a noble does something stupid in private, there is no problem. If a peasant does something in private, they could still get into trouble.

In some places were the law isn't so strictly enforced, the disparity between what Elite can get away with verse Extras is even wider.

How common is the public knowledge of the Eld's existence and how does it works?
If you've ever watched Anime, it's premise (much like with comic books) is that normal people have seen it happen and are in awe of it. Also that normal people tend to get fucked over by it (collateral damage). In this world, life wouldn't be possible without Elites to take down the terrible things that crawl out of the Labrinth. It's common enough knowledge, there's lots of misinformation and superstition from the uneducated masses. So hurling a fireball down the street to kill a stray zombie would be a very noteworthy event, but isn't unheard of.

What is the general moral of the setting?
It's the Middle Ages, so equality for all hasn't set in yet. Worse the rise of Elites has made it abundantly clear that "all men are NOT created equal." People of power and usefulness to the ruling elite can get away with a lot. Now, if you read the updated setting I posted last night, you'll see that in this Barony, the law is very strict. The Baron doesn't want Elites getting drunk and burning down a neighborhood. So the general rule of law is very strict and "if you don't get caught, it's not illegal" rule underlies this.

Is the stealing or inheritance the only ways for someone acquire the Blood of Eld?
Unless you can think of another cool way, which I would consider. But this is a fixed and limited resource that's hard to get. Otherwise everyone would be walking around with god powers. So those two methods help keep the ratios of Elites to Extras sane. It also is consistent with most RPGs that state you get powerful by defeating difficult challenges.

If there aren't any gods, is there still religion?
While there are no gods to pray too, there are cults that spring up around Elites. Cults are common and difficult to stop anyway, because the masses are uneducated and they see godlike things happening by people amongst them. Imagine how easy it would be able to form a cult IRL if someone could do a bit of real magic? Then remove all education from 95% of the population.

Are there any kind of settlement at the Dark Wood or only the five at the plateaus?
There are tribal bands of hunter-gathers still in the Dark Wood. Life is very difficult and mortality is high, but hey they are free to do whatever they want...until something horrible murders them. As a result, most tribes that are still around end up having some sort of Elite as a body guard, but they do not exceed 20-30 in size. It's just too hard to keep everyone alive, even for 1 Elite.

Does the Iron Baron has a family? Wife or daughter?
That's an excellent idea. Yes, all nobles have large families, because family is power and loyalty. The notion of lineage is very important, if you imagine the nobles are often not just passing down wealth and political power, but also the power of the Eld. It's rare for a noble not to have the power of the Eld, but not unheard of for a small Count or Knight/Sheriff.

Airships vs Guild Navigators
Airships are a new invention and most common in the Inner Baronies near the heart of the Empire (and furthest from the tears in the Veil). So Guild Navigators will be the most common overland travel for long distances, especially with large caravans. Think about an Ocean Liner vs Air Freight today IRL. The majority of goods are still shipped over the ocean or highways. It's still horrendously expensive to ship something via airplane IRL!

If this isn't Dungeons and Dragons, what the heck is it? How are encounter's resolved?
This isn't Dungeons and Dragons, where the goal is linear power progression and "death by a thousand cuts" as your power is slowly whittled down over the course of x-number of fights until you reach the boss. Instead it's a series of literary scenes were the Heros resolve problems the GM throws at them using the abilities they have available. If it fits, then you can post the resolution yourself. If you are unsure, you can PM me to verify your plan works. Then the GM posts either a new Scene or addition to the existing Scene. I saw lots of these attempts to do RPG on the forums as getting slowed down because players weren't sure what they could write without going "god mode" which everyone hates, and then waiting for the GM to tell them and write up the resolutions. I wanted a faster paced writing experience with some of the enjoyable limitations of a traditional RPG/Table-top experience.

Example Scenes​

Scene 1 - 5 Goblins (extras) attacking a Caravan (15 extras: 3 guards; 10 peasants; 2 merchants).

(Insert several paragraphs of GM Flavor Text to set the scene)

Player Response: Jerico eyed the rushing goblins, but he didn't feel comfortable putting himself out there yet. It looked like too many for him to take on himself, and he hated seeing his own blood. So Jerico hung back, letting the caravan guards rush out and engage with the first wave of goblins. The guards managed to catch 3 of the goblins. The melee was short and bloody. Two of the guards ended up tangled and bleeding out with three of the fallen goblins. The remaining guard was still on his feet swaying. He didn't look so good.

It did give Jerico the edge, he wanted. Jerico had spent the time climbing onto of a nearby wagon, and jumped from the roof in the midst of the remaining goblins. The other two goblins had converged on some nearby horses and seemed intent on butchering them. Jerico's sword sliced off the head of one goblin. Jerico dropped to his knees as he absorbed the impact of the fall. He pivoted, slicing out with his twin blades. The remaining two goblins dropped dead.

Sure the caravan owner wasn't thrilled, but Jerico didn't mind. The agreement was for protection. He had delivered on that for the most part.

In this scene, the player had some options for how they wanted to write the resolution of the scene. If they wanted, they could have killed all 5 goblins on their own but been injured for the next scene. Or they could wait for the 3 guards to engage, and kill some goblins. It's a 1 for 1 trade with Extras for the most part (you have some latitude). Your own extras that you start with are a little harder. When there are only 3 goblins left, the player can rush in and kill them all without being hurt for the next scene.


Scene 2 - Pack of wolves (7 extras) attacking the horses (4 extras) and (1 guard) in the middle of the night.

(Insert several paragraphs of GM Flavor Text to set the scene)

Player Response: Jerico was tired from the battle and had settled into his cloak. He hated having to lean against a tree, but he had doubts about the caravan members watching out for him now with 2 of their members dead. With only 1 guard left, some of the others had agreed to keep watch, but Jerico had his doubts about their ability to even do that.

So when the wolves came in the middle of the night, Jerico was half-ready. Enough that he didn't get tangled up in the initial onslaught. Unfortunately, that meant the wolves were able to get into where the horses were tied up. The lone surviving guard, bless him, must have loved those horses, because he was in there amongst them as soon as the wolves struck.

Jerico wasn't keen to get mauled, so he worked his way around the deadly skirmish. The horses were doing a surprisingly good job, collectively they'd managed to take out three of the wolves. The poor guard took out another wolf, but joined his fallen comrades as a result. Poor guy, Jerico thought. Welp, that meant better odds for him.

Jerico unleashed his Eld. His blades were a whirlwind of death. He even managed to miss most of the remaining horses. Sure a few lost legs, but he took out two wolves. Even as he dived into the midst of the remaining two, one of the wolves caught his leg and gave him a shake. Jerico was hurled beneath a horse and caught a horse shoe in his face. His vision was a blur, but he felt that the wolves were close. He released the Eld one last time, his body a blur as the divine hand of the dead god steered his movements. He took out the last two wolves before he had time to register what he'd done. It was always like that.

Jerico slumped to the ground. Breathing was difficult with his broken nose gushing blood. His leg ached, but he was alive.

In this scene, the player had let 2 guards die and the 3rd was really hurt. The horses being extras and since it fits, are able to take out a few wolves. The guard can take out another (but die in the process). So the player sacrificed 3 horses and 1 guard, so that only 4 wolves needed to be taken out. The player still got hurt, but at least the player's character didn't lose a leg (maimed)!

Encounter 3 - Rock Giant (Elite) ambushed caravan while going through a mountain pass.

GM Flavor Text: The caravan is in poor shape. Jerico is still hurt, and all the guards are dead, and only a few horses remain. A several wagons had to be abandoned as a result. Now with everyone depressed and broken, a bolder was hurdled into the side of one of the carts. A massive Rock Giant looms high above.

Jerico was pissed and hurt. All he wanted was to dive into a hot bath and with a women around either arm. "Fuck it," he said, pushing off the side of one of the carts. His legs bunched up and in that moment, the full force of the Eld shot out of him. He was a whirling, cyclone of destruction. His blades tore through the Rock Giants hardened skin, and he emerged out the other side. Unfortunately, after his attack he was caught up in the remains of the Rock Giant's body. The weight and gravity pulled him along with the carcass. He careened off of several boulders, breaking his left arm and fracturing his several more ribs. One of his swords was lost in tumble down the side of the mountain.

But hey, Jerico was alive and he'd completed his contract.

In this final scene, Jerico uses his Adventure Ability and a Flavor Ability to leap up the side of a mountain and one-shot kill an Elite. It's plausible because Jerico loses one of his magical swords in the process (Lost/Miamed) plus remains injured when he rolls into town. It would be a situation where asking the GM to verify might make sense. In which, a PM would have been exchanged.

 

[kizkiz]

Character Sheet Template

Character Sheet​

Modified from HotCider's Steel Skies game! Thanks HC

Before submitting to the forum, send me either your concept (1+ paragraphs) or final draft. I'll review and approve. Then you can post it to this forum. Please copy and paste the below and fill it out. The formatting is intentionally visible, so you don't have to recreate the correct formatting when filling in the template. Just copy and paste the formatting and all, then fill in the text pieces, then PM me.

START COPY & PASTE​

[center][b][u]Overview[/u][/b][/center]
[b]Name:[/b] This is the name of your character.
[b]Alias:[/b] Any honorifics, nicknames, titles, etc.
[b]Role:[/b] Tank, Melee, Ranged, or Healer.
[b]Profession:[/b] Useful adventuring class, training, etc. Ninja or whatever.
[b]Age:[/b] You just became an Elite, and Extras don't live past 60. Be reasonable.
[b]Gender:[/b]
[b]Race:[/b] Nord Human from the Five Cities.
[b]Height:[/b] Between 4-7 feet.
[b]Weight:[/b] Be realistic.
[b]Hair Color:[b] It is anime...
[b]Eye Color:[/b] It is anime...
[b]Physical Description:[/b] Describe how they look. This should be at least 2 paragraphs. Elites should look Elite, so go wild. What has possessing the Blood of Eld done to you? Anything fitting the anime/manga vibe works, but if you look inhuman...humans will fear you. Extras are very superstitious.

[b]Visual Description:[/b] Find some pictures. Use [url="www.blah.com"]Few Words[/url]
[b]Sexuality:[/b] It is an adult site. Which ways do you swing, what are your limits, turn ons, turn offs, etc. Who knows it could happen.

[center][b][u]Personality[/u][/b][/center]

If you are stuck, just use Meyers-Briggs as follows. Do you enjoy interacting with others or prefer to stick to yourself? Do you rely on logic or feelings to make decisions? Do you trust your intuition or five senses more? Do you keep open-minded or like things concrete/decided? When do you break your preferences?

If you are stuck, use D&D Alignment or morality system as follows. How do you resolve conflict? Do you abide by what is good for everyone or do you do what is best for yourself? How far will you go to do what you want? Will you follow or ignore societal rules, laws, and customs? Do you seek balance and neutrality in what you do or do you take sides?

Are you an optimist or pessimist?
What three things make you happy?
What three things make you mad?
Are you superstitious? How do you make sense of the world?
What quirks does your character have?


[center][b][u]Background[/u][/b][/center]
Need at least 1 plot hook and 3+ is a bonus! What was life like as an Extra? What transpired to get you the Blood of Eld? What has life been afterwards? Who do you care about and why? Whose fucked you over and what's been done about it? How did you acquire your 2 Extras?

You also need 1 reason why you are beholden to the Iron Baron (see setting). I want all of you to be in the same mercenary company, which is held on retainer directly to the Iron Baron. You can break from him if you want later on, but at game start you all should have a good reason to be together and follow what the Baron tells you to do.

[center][b][u]Equipment[/u][/b][/center]
If your character has magical items based on their role, describe them here.
Describe the equipment your character has for their profession and skills.
Describe the offensive and defensive equipment your character uses to hurt others and prevent being hurt themselves. You need tangible things here or you are vulnerable in combat. Each magical item can substitute for one or the other. A fighter might have chain mail and a mace whereas a wizard might have enchanted robes and spell components, etc.

[center][b][u]Abilities[/u][/b][/center]


[u]Flavor Abilities[/u]

[list]

[*] Flavor 1 - Description

[*] Flavor 2 - Description

[*] Flavor 3 - Description

[/list]


[u]Scene Abilities[/u]

[list]

[*] Scene 1 - Description

[*] Scene 2 - Description

[*] Magical Item Ability 1 - If granted from Role.

[*] Magical Item Ability 2 - If granted from Role.

[*] Healing - If granted from Role.

[/list]


[u]Adventure Ability[/u]

[list]

[*] Adventure 1 - Description. Either a perfect defense or offense.

[*] Tank - If granted from Role. Defensive in nature.

[/list]


[u]Skills[/u]

[list]

[*] Skill 1 - Something you are awesome at from your Profession

[*] Skill 2 - Something you are awesome at from your Profession

[*] Skill 3 - Something you are awesome at from your Profession

[/list]


[u]Extras:[/u]

[list]

[*] Extra 1 - Utility or Combat? Describe who and what they are. What can they do?

[*] Extra 2 - Utility or Combat? Describe who and what they are. What can they do?

[/list]

END COPY & PASTE​

 

[Deckrect]

Tamilla Strider

Overview​

Name: Tamilla Strider
Alias:
Role: Healer
Profession: Priestess
Eld: Lust, The Body, Beauty
Age: 22
Gender: Female
Race: Born at Vos; she lived long at Sulan too.
Height: 5’4”
Weight: 100lb
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Blue

Physical Description:​

Tamilla is a delicate, fancy, exotic, and seductive woman. The most notorious of her attributes are the huge pair of firm watermelons ruling her chest, crowned by popped out cherries. Long and cascading black hair dominates her head, shoulders, and back. Her gaze shines with the purest, light blue color like a cloudless spring sky. Her skin is a flawless, white molded over her wide hips and flat belly.

Her curves don’t stop there; she overflows with delicious curves. From behind, her ass is curvy and round. Tamil keeps her body immaculately groomed. She will play with her appearance, like when she grows a small black strip of short hair or when she paints her sex for her cult’s glory.
Body painting is often necessary, as the priestess enjoys wearing as little clothing as possible. She only dresses to the minimum required; always preferring light and revealing outfits.

When her body paints are applied, she enjoys drawing a flame over her sex, covering her body in vines or simply taking full body areas and writing down prayers and exaltations to her Sisterhood and their Creed. In keeping with that, apple themes often play along her lower back and ass. Tamilla loves to wear her purple and golden cloak as much as possible, wearing the enchanted purple boots and little else. This is when the Ring of Warmth becomes crucial to protect her from the cold.

Day-to-day Tamilla wears makeup, which she considers a “must have” for any proud woman. Varying from dark to light tones, the colors chosen are always exotic and plentiful.

Visual Description: Dressed to impress.

Personality​

Tamilla is a joyful young woman who prefers having company to being alone, enjoying interpersonal dealings instead of technical ones. She stays away from intricate things like logical challenges or mechanical considerations. Her intuition is excellent, and she always puts people and feelings above any other interest.
She really believes that people may find themselves happier when true to feelings and frequently rejects the ‘status quo’ or societal standards, which can lead to difficult situations. She doesn't like nature and wildlife; she’d rather spend her days in the city. She has a humanistic nature, tending to forgive people from transgressions as soon as she is able to understand personal motivations. This ability of “walking in other people’s shoes” and exploring multiple view points gives her an upper hand when dealing with social conflicts and diplomatic situations. Her success has lead to pride, perhaps to her detriment.

It is common for Tamilla to insert herself into people’s personal lives and problems, overstepping boundaries and trying to control those around her. She attempts to enhance the lives of those she cares about, but this brings her in so deep that she ends up bossing them around. This is frequently taken as invasive, but she usually gets away with because of her stunning body and raw charisma.

Tamilla’s worse problem is vanity. She takes beauty and allure as core life goals, instead of a tool to get what she wants, it is what she wants! Sure it helps her maintain her body in perfect condition and appearance, but it distracts her from what should be important. Because she so often is only motivated by beauty and sensuality, she goes after insignificant objectives. For example she’ll try to acquire a certain type of clothing or makeup instead of pursuing important objectives like hunting down a serial murderer. She’s easily distracted.

However, apart from a good and pleasant personality, Tamilla has a dark side that comes out. It is a byproduct of her skills in dealing with people and her insistence on controlling people lives. She can be possessive, using a mixture of seduction, help, and control to make people worship her. She isn’t consciously doing it; it just always ends up happening. Although she doesn’t realize it, she may end up enslaving those she truly cares for, rendering them little more than puppets.

Sexuality:

The Blood of Eld (among other forces) exerts a great influence on her sexuality. As a result, she is a lesbian, exalting in the female body. It just feels right and natural. She’s compelled to seek out different women and explore the differences between these relationships.

Although she isn’t aware of it, her failed relationship with her mother has manifested as an obsession with breasts. She enjoys all activities around them and has become quite creative in coming up wit new ways to worship them.

On the other hand, her religious life has deepened her appreciation for how sacred erotics acts can be. There are many facets the she has become initiated into, but the most special being the bond of trust between a submissive partner to a dominate one (usually Tamilla). It’s caused her to evaluate how she treats others in ordinary life in an attempt to avoid misunderstandings and confusion that can come up as a result of her tendency to dominate.

Tamilla is not fond of men, even though her religious creed obliges her to satiate males in sexual distress. She undertakes her required duties when it comes to men with care as she doesn’t want to be exploited for her faith.

Background​

To understand Tamilla’s story, first we need to understand Margoth’s story, Tamilla’s mother. Born into a good family from Vos, Margoth was renowned for her fairness, patience, and appetite for collecting information. Apart from a good choice as wife, she was also an interesting person to talk to about general curiosities of the world. So, at the age of 17, a wealthy local merchant proposed to Margoth. Unfortunately, Elion Strider came to die only a couple of years after the marriage, leaving Margoth a young and lone widow.

Her late husband had taken her far from her family. She felt alone and sad, so she would visit her husband’s grave. She divested herself of all of her husband’s merchant business. Instead, she focused on what she loved: teaching girls about the world and the etiquette to rise up in it. For most girls that meant molding themselves into an appealing wife.

During a visit to the cemetery, the depressed Margoth met Yonna, a mysterious woman who was also visiting the tomb of a beloved one who died long ago. The two women had a good time together. Day after day, they met at the cemetery. Eventually, they met not to mourn, but to be in the company one each other. It was just a matter of days until Margoth found herself not just kissing her new friend, but taking intimate pleasure from Yonna. They hide inside the catacombs and funeral chambers, trying to make love to replace their lost love.

After three weeks, the romance ended just as suddenly as it had started. Yonna was gone. Margoth spiraled deep into depression and despair. That was until Margoth learned she was pregnant. As a young widowed teacher now mysteriously pregnant, she felt the guilt of betraying her late husband and society’s judgement upon her. She felt like she’d failed as both a wife and a women, having just a torrid a homosexual affair. Margoth never recovered. She swore to abstain from romantic relationships for the rest of her life. She threw herself into her role as as mother, teacher, and widow. She covered for the pregnancy, claiming Elion had impregnated her before dying. She kept the birth a sufficient mystery that no one ever questioned the story openly.

Years passed and Tamilla grew up as any girl from Vos, save for the privileged education she had. Tamil was infused with knowledge about places, people, history, and legends from an early age. Information she felt was useless and would would never be put to any good use. She also developed talents for cooking, dancing, singing, and needlecraft in order to follow her mother’s path. Her mother worked hard for Tamilla to become an appealing and eligible wife material.

Beyond taking care of the day-by-day affairs in the large house — the remainder of her alleged father’s estate — Tamilla also served as an assistant to her mother’s tutorage of the young ladies who visited for learning. Tamilla never became a teacher herself but had enough training to help Margoth on many topics.

As Tamilla grew, Margoth could not avoid noticing how beautiful, voluptuous, and desirable her daughter was becoming. Particularly how large and attractive Tamilla’s breasts had become. They were often to blame for drawing undesired attention from the wrong sort of man. However, Margoth could never imagined Tamilla’s considerable endowments were anything but normal. Granted Tamilla looked anything but normal, but Margoth could not fathom her daughter might have inherited the Blood of Eld. Hell, she still doubted it was Yonna that got her pregnant. How could another woman accomplish such a thing? But the Blood of Eld did burn bright within Tamilla.

The first manifestation of the Eld came the day Tamilla found herself kissing one of her mother’s students, mirroring Margoth’s tragedy. It wasn’t just one young lady. Many, most in fact, were filled with lustful urges when around Tamilla. Yet, Tamilla had no control, malice or shame over the girls drawn to her. It was just a matter of time until Margoth not just found but witnessed what was going on in her own house. Even if feeling guilty about Tamilla’s immoral behavior, Margoth had no power to resist the allure herself, spying the practice around the house and falling to tears after realizing her arousal. A mere Extra had no chance against the Eld.


On the other hand, Tamilla was over joyed to find herself with an abundance of relationships, allowing her to explore the Eld’s calling from inside. From her point of view, she was assisting those girls — who were condemned to get married and fall prey to social pressures — in finding their true selves and body’s pleasures. She opened them to a much wider world. She was glad, feeling free and loved. She relished being feminine and dedicated time to pamper body.

However, Margoth could not contain her disgust for long. Tamilla’s mother was both nervous and angry. Margot packed Tamilla’s belongings and used the last of Elion’s inheritance to secure Tamilla passage with a Guild Navigator leading a caravan along the Ley Lines.

The poor girl was awash in confusion. She fell to tears as her world was torn apart without warning or explanation. All the the way, she wondered what she did wrong. What she could neer shake was her mother’s final words, “I wish you were Elion’s daughter.” Tamil never fully recovered from being abandoned, dumped, and left alone.

The caravan rolled on the white road up to Suland, delivering the girl to the Sisterhood of the Apple. A small cult dwelling in an manor house turned temple. In a matter of hours, Tamilla found her punishment was indeed, a blessing. Once inside the temple, Tamilla found a dozen women dedicating her lives to the contemplation of beauty and adoration of eroticism. They worshiped the feminine body as divine, and attempted to spread a gospel of free love and uninhibited pleasure.

That was everything Tamilla ever wanted. She grew to look upon her mother’s reaction as a selfless act to force her daughter to grow as a person. Tamil was certain it was a final act of true love. She never suspected her Moher’s true reasons for banishing her.

Tamilla’s days as a student in the cult’s religious training surpassed all joys and discovers she’d made in those golden days at her mother’s school. They taught her the humanities like painting and poetry. They showed her to express beauty and the principles of aesthetics. She learned to mix makeup and tailoring dresses. Music and dance were central to the mastery of the supreme art of the erotic. She accepted the demands of discipline, dedication, and effort. She found herself most at home while undertaking the strange and exotic practices of seduction and pleasure.

Tamilla’s new sisters recognized her intuitive understanding of what they taught. Tamilla often didn’t need to be taught, she somehow already knew. The Eld guided her body. She rose to the top of the Sisterhood. What no one knew was that the new apprentice was helped by the manifesting Eld powers, tuned to the alluring, beauty and erotic prowess, which supported her on attaining the full title of priestess. She was initiated into the most sacred rituals of her order.
In time, the Most High Apple of the Sisterhood like most of the sisters were forced to reconsider Tamilla’s role within the cult. However, before any decision could be made, a calling from the Iron Baron himself came to the Sisterhood demanding a priestess give testimony as to the nature, activities. Many of the Sulan people accused the Sisterhood of the Apple of manipulation and sexual slavery. Tamilla begged for the honor of attending the call and defending her Sisterhood. Like everyone else in the cult, even the Most High Apple felt a strange compulsion to give into Tamilla’s wants and desires. A compulsion that had only grown each day in proximity to Tamilla. In the end, perhaps the Most High Apple saw an opportunity to rid herself of a potential rival. Or perhaps the Most High Apple sought to honor the freedom of choice their order believed was sacred.

Once at the court, Tamilla demonstrated her talents and expelled all doubts about the Apple Sisters. She acquitted herself so well, she received covert invitations to minister privately to many of the women at the court. She accepted each request as a sacred duty to be performed. With each request, her time in the capital lengthened. She took it as an opportunity and calling to investigate the vague but malicious complaints about the Sisterhood of the Apple. Before any useful information would be dug out, grave reports arrived. There had been a mob of scorned women who believed their men were being seduced into obscene acts by the Sisterhood. The women’s jealousy blossomed into a destructive tidal wave that washed away the Sisterhood. The mob in Suland stormed the Sisterhood’s temple and burned it to the ground. The Sisterhood was scattered, if any of the sister’s remained at all.

This may or may not be true. Certainly neither Tamilla, the authorities, nor even the jealous people of Suland know who is behind the attacks against the Sisterhood. Perhaps they were orchestrated by a group of Succubus from deep within the Dark Woods? Perhaps it was they who influenced peons to ruin the Sisterhood of the Apple? To steal its power? Perhaps their real objective is to acquire the Eld of Lust for some nefarious purpose?

Open Objectives:

1. Return to her mother and make past clear,
2. Find who her “real father” is,
3. Rebuild the cult,
4. Stop whatever force is threatening from behind the scenes.

Equipment​

An elegant purple and gold cloak with hood, a tiny white white bikini, a case containing varied makeup and tools to apply it, a hand mirror, scrolls inside a scroll case, a pot of ink, quills for writing, paint pots and brushes, a small harp, lots of fabric and exotic clothing, a leather backpack, and a strap-on dildo.

Mood Ring: A ring given by Margoth to Tamilla as a heritage adornment left by “her father.” In truth, it was given to Margoth by Yonna and is the only link to the mysterious woman. The ring grows warm and looks red when Tamilla gets sexually excited. It grows cold and purple when Tamilla gets depressed. It gleams gold when Tamilla is happy and becomes pitch black when Tamilla loses her temper.

The Purple Boots: A pair of long, thigh high, stiletto heeled purple boots. They were an old gift to the Sisterhood from a faithful and thankful enchanter. The boots are immaculate; they resist dirt and self repair.

Abilities​

Flavor Abilities

• Perfection – As the Eld manifested, it shaped Tamilla’s features and curves to the most perfect and desirable sort. Her beauty stuns and drag the attention of all who rests eyes over her.
• Body Regulation — Invoking the Eld, Tamilla is able to maintain her body temperature so that cold and hot weather doesn’t bother her. She can’t resist freezing cold nor boiling heat, but normal temperature extremes don’t bother her. She is also able to enhance the muscles in her body to allow her to perform outrageous dance moves (as well as dodge dangerous attacks).
• Fingertip Hues – By evoking its powers, the character may use her fingertips to apply colors, shades and textures to any surface as she wills. The color becomes like paint for all purposes of removal, having no special properties.

Scene Abilities

• Allure – Tamilla is capable of seducing, convincing, and bending someone’s will to do whatever she asks. The more absurd, the harder she has to work.
• Whip of Ecstasy – This is a curse that Tamilla hurls at a target. They are debilitated by a succession of orgasms that leaves the cursed drowning in ecstasy.
• The Gaze – The power digs deep inside one’s heart and soul, finding secrets, intentions and lies. They help Tamilla to root out regret, desire, and feelings.
• The Flame – The Flame is a healing power, invoked by arousing erotic, sexual energy in harmony between the priestess and the wounded. By agitating sexual energy, she can cause the body to focus on rebirth. Flesh is rebuilt, and health is restored.

Adventure Ability

• Clay of Desire – When she unveils the full power of the Eld, Tamilla can reshape herself or someone else into another creature. She can mimic an existing person, race, or even design her own. It is harder to alter an unwilling person and more difficult the less realistic the form she tries to create. This power lasts for a scene.

Skills

• Skill 1 - Influence
• Skill 2 - Painting
• Skill 3 - Sex

Extras:

• Feddorah – Combat bodyguard. Born into a family of farming serfs, Feddorah was the only sister of eight brothers. She worked hard along side her father and brothers. She grew up as a tomboy. Many of the neighbors mocked her for pretending to be a man. She left home at an early age, making herself look and act like a man. However, she was lonely and a part of her longed to be feminine. Also, she was attracted to women. Her luck changed when Tamilla found her. For the first time Feddorah actually had physical contact with another woman and from that day, she dedicated herself as a follower to the Sisterhood. When Tamilla decided to undertake the long travel to the capital, Feddorah jumped to be Tamilla’s escort and bodyguard. She is eager to return generosity she’s been given from the cult. She has some skill but what she lacks she makes up with a good heart. Tamilla spends a lot of time trying to turn Feddorah into a real woman.
  
• Vanessa - Utility servant. From the small group of students that Tamilla tutors in the Baron’s court, there is Vanessa. Vanessa is a young, shy, and meek librarian. Her parents find her pathetic and unable to find a good husband. Vanessa is inept at the social machinations at court. She has serious self-image issues and feels she is incompetent. During her time at the court, Tamilla found the girl cute, intriguing, and smart. They have just begun cementing their relationship; however, they enjoy the company of each other. The priestess calls for Vanessa’s help in doing research and solving puzzles.

 

[LucianDevine]

Overview​

Name: Kosta Knoton
Alias: Kosta the Steadfast
Role: Melee
Profession: Blacksmith
Age: 22
Gender: Male
Race: Suland Human from the Five Cities.
Height: 5’6”
Weight: 150
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Dark blue, purple, or red depending on mood.

Physical Description:​

Kosta is well built for his height and weight. His life as a blacksmith has given him more muscle mass than average for his size. Despite his bulk, his movements are swift and precise.

His normal eye color is dark blue. Whenever he witnesses grave injustice or gets angry, his eyes become a demonic shade of red, a stark contrast to his black hair. If somebody causes his eyes to become red, somebody — either that person or Kosta — is going to die in the near future. If he ever finds his true love, his eyes will turn purple whenever he is intimate with her. Given how recently he inherited the Blood of Eld, he doesn't know that his eyes change color.

Storm's Fury looks like a simple ordinary katana at first glance. Kosta started forging it the same night he inherited the Blood of Eld. He worked on it for 24 hours, pouring his heart and soul into the process. The last step in the process was naming the mighty weapon. When he spoke its name, lightning surged down from the heavens and bathed the entire blade.

Visual Description: Kosta Knoton Storm's Fury

Personality​

Being a blacksmith for most of his life, Kosta is used to dealing with customers. He interacts well with others and tries to find a peaceful solution before resorting to violence. That being said, he has no problem using force when the situation calls for it.

The Blood of Eld has affected his personality, though. He used to focus more on logic and the physical aspect of things. Now though, he relies a lot more on his feelings, intuition, and his gut instinct than he used to. As such, he is open-minded and flexible, taking each situation as an individual instead of trying to lump all similar situations together and reacting the same way automatically.

Kosta's honorific/alias is "the Steadfast" because he is a man of his word. If he says he is going to do something, he is going to do it, up to and including helping friends, customers, and paying debts. He is an optimist to the end, always trying to see the good in people and situations. He never gives up. He would rather fight to the end, protecting those he loves and cares about than live as an oath breaker and coward. He always chooses self sacrifice over self preservation. He doesn’t believe in leaving any person behind.

Sexuality: Straight and vanilla on his own; however, he would do anything to please his mate. In the end, his limits become a reflection of hers more than his own.

Background​

Kosta inherited the Blood of Eld from his father. While his father was out adventuring, he was back home running the family business. He was a talented blacksmith and responsible for everything from the generic weapons filling the shop walls to custom high-end orders brought by his family’s reputation.

Just recently, his father became mysteriously ill and returned home. His father didn't last long. Kosta was there when he passed away, inheriting the Blood of Eld. His father’s death doesn’t sit well with him. His father didn't have any grievous injuries that would have made it necessary to give up adventuring. Similarly, there wasn’t anything in particular to explain why his dad weakened so quickly and severely. Kosta stood over his father's body and vowed to find out what really happened. His father was a great man and didn’t deserve that sort of death. That same night he was filled with inspiration and started forging a new katana. He worked on the weapon for twenty-four straight hours without rest. When he was finished, he named the weapon Storm’s Fury.

After his forged his new weapon, he passed the shop to his younger brother, another accomplished blacksmith. They'd exchanged correspondence and agreed on when the transition would happen, but his brother was late. This was unusual for his brother, as his brother was a stickler for punctuality. He delayed his departure until he receive a letter from an old family friend saying that his brother was okay and sorry for being late. His brother had been tied up with a complex custom order. Still Kosta lingered, but ultimately he was compelled to leave even if it meant leaving the shop closed for the first time in history. Somebody at the Iron Baron’s court had contacted him, claiming that they were calling in an old debt from his father. Torn but honor bounded, Kosta left his home town for the first time and took up his father’s path right where his father had left off. That life even included his father's loyal pet Daemyn, a wolfdog. Despite his initial objections, he also allowed his apprentice Ethan to accompany him as his new squire.

His father was a member of a mercenary company that was held on retainer directly to the Iron Baron. There was no better way for him to follow in his father's legacy than to join the same mercenary company that his father had belonged to. In addition to picking up his father's life, Kosta was also responsible for any debts his father still had outstanding.

The Knoton family never made a formal agreement with words alone. If they ever became indebted to another person or family, they always drew up a formal contract. This formal contract was signed by the person taking responsibility for the debt and sealed with the seal of the Knoton family. A second copy was drawn up for the recipient to keep and reference. If anybody intended to try and collect on a debt, they had to bring the original copy with the wax seal still intact. If the seal was broken, the debt was invalidated, as it's authenticity could no longer be guaranteed.

From the moment he'd inherited the Blood of Eld, Kosta's life had changed. It seemed like every aspect of his life had been thrown into chaos, right down to his dreams. Hell, until the night after he'd forged "Storm's Fury" he'd never had a single dream in his life. Starting that night, though, and every day since, he'd been having dreams, or rather a single repeating dream. He kept seeing a woman's face surrounded by darkness, a prison of some sort maybe? The only light she had was the candle that was lighting up her face. Worse even though the dream was of the exact same scene, he knew that it wasn't the same dream. He knew it because every night the candle that he saw was getting shorter and shorter. He had no idea who this woman was, where she was, or even how he was supposed to find her. Despite all those obstacles, he felt a strong pull towards her, a pull that he couldn't explain.

Equipment​

In addition to his primary weapon Storm’s Fury, Kosta also carried a bow and a quiver of arrows. He was not the most accomplished archer in the world, but he was smart enough to know that he would not always be able to get into melee range of his opponents. He also had a dagger in each boot, which he could use in melee or to throw.

Kosta wore a simple set of chainmail armor. He also had a bracer on each of his forearms that he could use to blunt the effect of incoming attacks.

Arguably the most important piece of equipment Kosta had was his family signet ring, depicting the head of an attacking tiger. He wore it on the middle finger of his left hand and never took it off.

Abilities​

Flavor Abilities

• Moody Eyes - His eyes changed color in certain situations. People found looking at his demonic red eyes intimidating. To look upon his purple eyes was to feel a portion of his love and devotion to his soul mate.
  
• Static Aura - Kosta was continually surrounded by an aura of static electricity. It was normally invisible with no tangible effect. When his control was pushed, small static charges release around him, making his opponent’s hair stand on end and even giving off small jolts to any enemies who come too close.
  
• Wind Whispering - Kosta was able to use the Blood of Eld to command the wind itself to his advantage. He could whisper messages under his breath that the wind would carry to his intended recipients. Similarly, he could use the wind to create phantom noises or amplify already existing noises. With more steady concentration, he could conjure up an invisible wind servant that had moderate intelligence and could carry out simple tasks nearby.

Scene Abilities

• Thunderclap - Kosta found himself surrounded by goblins, but the small smile never left his face. He focused on his Static Aura and channeled his energy back into himself and then to his sword. After a moment, he gripped his katana and pulled it from its sheath in a wide sweeping arc. Using the katana’s momentum, he spun in a circle. A shockwave erupted from the completed circle. Every enemy that surrounded him was hurled backward. Immediately following the shockwave came a deafening roar. [size=-2]Note: After using Thunderclap, Static Aura becomes inactive until the beginning of the next scene.[/size]
  
  
• Dance of Death - Kosta’s entire body quaked with fury, and his red eyes burned with hatred as his grip on his katana tightened until his knuckles turned white. It took almost every ounce of his strength and willpower to hold himself back. That control was pushed to the limits as he forced himself to lift his foot and take a step towards his foe. With every step he took, his body shook with violent tremors. When he was close enough, he let himself go!
  
  His body was a blur of hurtling fury. He was under his opponent’s attack and unleashing own before his opponent could react. He moved with a tornado’s speed. His body and blade were little a whirling blur tracing the outline of each duck, dodge, and dance around his cumbersome opponent. With every movement, he attacked. With every attack, he moved. It was a perfect and beautiful dance of death, if anybody could see it.
  
  
• Lightning Shield - The blue lightning that covered the blade of Kosta's Katana crept slowly up the hilt of the weapon. It didn't stop there, though. When it touched his hand it continued along its path, covering first his hand and then his entire arm. Even then it didn't stop, though. It crawled along his chest, stopping briefly just below his neck while it covered his other arm and both of his legs. Only when just his head remained did it finally crawl up his neck and engulf his head.
  
  When it was all said and done, Kosta's demonic red eyes were all that could be seen through the blue lightning that danced along his flesh. A particularly large foe was undaunted by the display and dared to charge him. The smaller lightning-shrouded man simply side-stepped the attack and lifted his hand to brush against his enemy. The second contact was made, the larger man flinched terribly and fell to the ground. Kosta stepped beside the man's convulsing body and bent down to press his hand against the man's chest. The convulsions got worse with each passing second until the man let out a final death cry and went still.
  
  
• Shocking Katana: Whenever he speaks the command word, the blade is sheathed in blue lightning that electrocutes anything touched by it.

Adventure Ability

• Ancestral Strike - A powerful Iiajutsu strike passed down from father to son in the Knoton family. It gets stronger with each kill. Blue lightning crackled around Kosta. He focused every bit of himself into what he was about to do, a single perfect Iiajutsu strike. He channeled all of his energy into his weapon and adjusted his stance just so as his red eyes locked on his target. His fingers gripped the hilt of his sheathed katana. Before a second could pass, he lunged forward, ripping his katana from its home. Every fiber of his being was tied to that single action, aided by the innate power of the Iiajutsu strike itself. The blade crackled with its own blue lightning as he brought it up in a sweeping, lethal arc. He caught his opponent mid-stride. Blood clung to the blade of his for a moment before the blue lightning on the blade evaporated it.

Skills

• Appraisal - Appraising and identifying magical properties in weapons, armor, and shields. Being a former blacksmith and shop owner, Kosta had to deal with more than his fair share of con men and forgeries. He could quickly identify what material an item is made of, and given time and the resources, he could identify any magical properties the object might have.
  
  
• Spot - Detecting hidden doors and traps. His experience as a blacksmith had given him a keen eye for stone and metal. At a glance, he could get a feeling that something about a particular wall or floor wasn't right. Given the time, he could locate traps and hidden doors in stone or metal walls or floors
  
  
• Sense Motivates - Having dealt with more than his fair share of customers, Kosta developed a knack for figuring out people’s motivates such as if they were lying. He would hear them speak see them act, and get an intuition about them. It takes time for him if he thinks someone is lying.

Extras:

• Daemyn - Combat Extra. A wolf hound that was both a smart and loyal companion. He could easily do simple tricks on command like fetching simple items, heeling, and attacking. He was also good at tracking, as long as he had something to get the scent of his prey off of. Being half wolf, he was also naturally protective of his "pack" and would not hesitate to follow his "master" into combat.
  
  
• Ethan - Combat Extra. Ethan was Kosta's apprentice when he was running his family’s weapon shop. Ethan helped run the shop and helped Kosta craft the weapons, armor, and shields that adorned the walls. Neither his knowledge of blacksmithing nor his combat prowess compare to Kosta. He made up for it with loyalty. He would stand shoulder to shoulder with Kosta if allowed.

 

[HotCider]

Overview​

Name: Teutates “ToT” Orphaneal –His real name is rarely spoken and “Orphaneal” is merely a label for an orphan. He prefers to be called “Tot.” The name doesn’t mean much to anyone and certainly doesn’t sound threatening, but for OOC reasons, if you want to know the significance behind it, just look it up.
Alias: The One-Armed Swordsman; the alias is only by reputation, and some find it difficult to understand why a one-armed swordsman would be so feared. There are claims that the swordsman isn’t truly one-armed and that the alias alludes to his sword technique. There are myths; legends; and tales about the guy, but the truth will only be known for sure in person.
Role: Melee
Profession: Sellsword
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Race: He is believed to have been born in the main city of Nord.
Height: 6’3”
Weight: 225 lbs.
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Grey
Physical Description: The One-Armed Swordsman is, well, one-armed. His left arm is missing at the shoulder, making it appear as though he never had an arm to begin with. His hair is short, black and spiked, and his armor is obsidian and plated. It snugly fits the muscles underneath, and so if he appears big, it’s not entirely the armor. The sword he is renowned to wield is rumored to nearly be as big as he is, but when one sees the swordsman in person, they won’t see him equipped with it. He appears as a swordsman without a sword, looking as bare as a knight without a shield. On the contrary though, the gauntlet of his right hand is reinforced to act as a buckler for deflecting blades, projectiles, or close-calls. The bicep of his right arm is the only area below his neck that is without armor, giving his arms free range of motion. He wears greaves over black trousers and knee-high armored boots.

Beneath Tot’s armor is a scarred tapestry. Scarred flesh hatches over a wall of muscle hardened from numerous duels. His tunics tend to be loose and made of cool material that lays over his body quite well. The swordsman has a strong jaw and fierce eyes that have seen the ugliest sides of reality. Again, contrary to his reputation, Tot seems like an average guy—hardly intimidating unless one were to provoke that side. He is pleasant on the eyes and loins, if a maiden were to be into men of his size and caliber (if ya know what I mean).

Finally, the mysterious great sword. Tot has a second arm and the way it manifests is when he manifests his sword. The sword that Tot wields shouldn’t be humanly possible to lift or use expertly. Right away, anyone could see that he uses an eldritch blade, and his left arm is completely human when wielding it. His left arm bears no armor, and strangely it cannot be harmed as though it were an illusion. If a foe were to chop it off, then it would simply vanish along with the sword to reappear only when Tot draws it from its Void Sheath again. The great sword is nearly six-feet-long, and its nearly a foot wide. Its intricate design gives it the function to make enemies bleed profusely. Due to the sword’s characteristics, Tot calls the sword his “Vital Edge” for the blade seems to have an unquenchable thirst for blood. Tot only wields the sword one-handed with his left hand. Otherwise, he will wield it two-handed. While in his left hand, the blade is as light as a feather, but it cannot be wielded by anyone else. If he were ever disarmed, it would disappear and so the blade can only be seen when Tot is grasping it.

Visual Description: N/A
Sexuality: View my SRP profile. It is outdated, but I read over it and probably wouldn’t change much any way.

Personality​

Tot wasn’t raised under an education system. His intelligence stems from real-life experiences, which tips the scale in favor of common sense over academia. What this means is, he can’t read for shit. He merely recognizes common signs and shapes by frequent association. If you want him to go after somebody, then draw a picture of him or give him some sort of vivid verbal description. Don’t ask him to ever write or read anything. You’ll only get it in chicken scratch, and then he’ll probably stare at you as though you had a grapefruit-sized hole in your face. Tot knows he can’t read and so he doesn’t like to be frustrated by his inabilities. Who cares in the end right? He kills people for a living (which means he’s a “Big Deal”).

His Blood of Eld is Gluttony, which means he has cravings that nearly go hand-in-hand with Greed. He grew up barely cutting it on the streets. His long periods of hunger and being malnourished were what drove him to sacrifice his arm so that he would never go hungry again. Tot loves food more than women and he loves gold just as much because gold allows him to acquire things—like food. A man of his size needs good-quality sustenance, and the more gourmet the meal, the greater the chance he’ll have a foodgasm on the first bite. Psychologically, being full puts his mind at ease and gives him a feeling that all is at peace in the world (even if a village was to be burning to the ground before his eyes). He hates starving, and will whine, bitch, and nag one’s head off about how empty his stomach is. It puts him in a foul and cranky mood, and the only cure is a full belly. He just might back-flip for a good meal depending on how desperate the situation is. He also just might throw his buddies under the bus for a plate of food. No hard feelings.

Being a swordsman, Tot likes a challenge, especially after he acquired his BoE. His BoE has made his swordsman skills nearly unrivaled and he not only hungers for a worthy opponent, his Vital Edge hungers for blood. Having grown up learning about life the hard way—from his mistakes and experiences—Tot is always eager to temper his skills.

He looks at the world in the same manner a survivalist would look at the wilderness. People have to do what they can to survive, and if that means cutting off a few heads or doing crazy favors, then he isn’t against it. In the end, those who are still alive are the only ones that matter. His time spent growing to adulthood gave him a dark view of the world. Human beings were never truly happy and that they will always desire two things: money and power. With the reputation he’s built, people leave him alone. They no longer look down on him like trash for having not been raised with a silver spoon in his mouth. He let’s his sword do the talking, and he’s pretty resistant to insults.

Background

“I didn’t ask to be here…”

Boy​

Tot doesn’t remember his real parents or if he even had any. The only person he remembers as far back as he can was a baker and mother-figure named Joanne. His name “Tot” actually was a name given to him by her husband Lukas because as a boy Tot was very small. Joanne was the one who added to his name, calling him “Teutates” the name of a great warrior and his inspiration for becoming a warrior later. Tot lived on the streets of Nord as a street urchin and would always visit Joanne once a day to receive free bread. She often sympathized with him and the other urchin boys to Lukas’s abhorrence. He felt that the child gangs of the city ruined the culture, and was eager to one day have a son of his own so that he could raise him right. Unfortunately, Lukas would later learn that Joanne was unable to bear him a child. This dramatically changed their relationship. Joanne became depressed for her husband made her feel useless and less of a woman. They would get into arguments over their marriage, and it was one night in a drunken rage that Lukas sexually assaulted Joanne. He raped her out of desperation and Tot visiting for some bread angrily intervened. He stabbed Lukas in the leg with a knife and instead of being thanked by Joanne, he received a harsh slap and was banished from her home. Being too young to understand why Joanne had turned on him, Tot was forced to find an alternative way to survive. He became more active in the child gangs, stealing and causing mischief. They ate food stolen from carts, rats, bugs, and wild birds. They even ate a dog once, and it bothered Tot greatly to kill it for it hadn’t hurt anyone, but it was either survive or perish. Tot grew up watching kids perish in the streets from starvation only for their bodies to be stepped over like rubbish. Some were lucky enough to be employed as labor for the mills, mines, and shipyards were overrun with children already. He saw kids get their hands cut off when they were caught stealing, and it had traumatized him enough to never risk stealing again.

One day, Tot’s body shut down. He collapsed in the street and he swore he laid there for hours too tired to move. He was certain that the alley would have been his grave, but he happened across a curious rat who had been checking him out. Eating the rat gave him enough strength to go on, and he spent what little energy he had, wondering the streets like a sick and gaunt child until he was abducted by a stranger. Tot was deposited into a wagon full of children that the man was apparently collecting. They were all carted out of Nord to the west to a plantation on the outskirts of Rhist.

Livestock​

The plantation was a wonderland compared to life in the city. There were open pastures, the air was fresh, and the lord and lady were kind. Lord Tiberius Dunlap was his name, and he had married his cousin Lady Beatrice with whom he had many children—some of them having been born rotten and not just to mean their behavior.

Lord Dunlap had been cutting costs to feed his numerous children by rounding up the free labor found in the streets of major cities. He gathered street urchins and took them to a paradise where they would never have to go hungry again for as long as they worked for him. He provided a safer and much more pleasant work environment than the industries in the city. They were all fed hot meals and kept nice and plump until those who could not keep up with the labor were taken into the house to never be seen again. Most of the servants suspected that they became housemaids and thought nothing of it. It was until Tot noticed a change in his own stamina that he began to suspect something was wrong. The culture Dunlap had created had been so misleading that Tot had only realized the man's plan when he noticed that there weren't any animals on the farm. So how did the lord acquire meat to feed them all? Even without a proper education, Tot was able to connect the dots. They had been eating human meat!

It was too dangerous for him to try and stop Lord Dunlap in the shape he was in. Tot started to train to cut down his weight and Lord Dunlap grew angry when other servants began to follow his example. He sought to distract Tot from his activities by inviting him into his house. Tot refused. He then offered to have him join his family at the table. Tot refused. He knew that if ever he went into that house, then he wouldn't return. By puberty, Tot had grown in size and shape from his training, and although he performed just as well as the other servants in his duties, Lord Dunlap didn't like how his servants were becoming health conscious. He sent three of his most beautiful daughters to seduce Tot. He was young at the time and had never laid with a woman. The female body was a region unexplored. Tot, being the young man he was at the time, did not refuse. He took the women into his bed and they attempted to scramble his conscience with plentiful glasses of wine. He indulged in the first two just because he never had such fancy wine before, but the teen wasn't as dumb as they figured. He pretended to drink the rest of the wine and was able to encourage Dunlap's daughters to indulge with him. They became drunk but were still loyal in their duties, but their tongues had loosened. They told him how they must take him to the house for their father was waiting. Tot went along with their plan and knew that he was more than ready to finally enter the house.

Waiting for him had been Lord Dunlap with a knife behind his back and when the lord sought to stab him in the gut faling for Tot's theatrics, he had not been expecting Tot to stop the knife and reverse it back into his fat gut. Tot had stabbed the lord with his left hand and the Eld within the lord caused his belly to swell and burst with the blood of all the souls he had devoured. Bathed in blood, Tot felt the knife burning his hand and throughout the chaos the blood baptism had created, the crimson liquid began to retract into his body, seeping through his eyes, nostrils, mouth, and ears, into his every orifice until Tot feared that he would drown. A voice spoke to him then.

Gluttony​

Gluttony spoke to Tot through his stomach, making it ache with a hunger that could have driven a person insane. Tot thought before that he had never experienced a hunger as great as he did in the streets of Nord, but the hunger of Gluttony had no comparison. It was crippling, causing Tot to shrivel as the god sought to feed his hunger by devouring him.

Tot begged the god to eat his arm if it would satisfy him long enough for him to feed the coldest dish: revenge. Gluttony agreed devouring his left arm and in return for Tot's service, he gave him his knife so that he could continue to serve him. With the blade that Tot would later call the Vital Edge, Tot slaughtered Lord Dunlap's family and fed them to his Eld. He found the servants that had been locked away within the manor's basement and set them free. He set the manor and Dunlap's land ablaze to purge it from the world.

With his new power, Tot had to learn how to live again. The Vital Edge always hungered for blood, and in turn, he felt his own appetite increase as a result. His body had to keep up with his growing power, and the only way Tot could feed them both was to sell his services.

The One-Armed Swordsman​

The Eld's bloodlust inadvertedly gave Tot a reputation that gradually swept throughout the cities and towns like a myth or legend as the story transformed along the course of the grapevine. They called him The One-Armed Swordsman, the most feared sellsword around. There were times where he would be eating in a tavern, and he would hear the patrons looking at him and whispering:

Look, it's the one-armed swordsman!

What? That guy? I thought they said he was seven-feet-tall and carried a blade the size of an anchor!

Ah, you're right. That must be just some gimp.

Talk about a drink-spitting moment. How can there be stories about him to the point that the One-Armed Swordsman actually became fictitious!?! The stories continued, but they were no longer talking about him. The One-Armed Swordsman officially became somebody else, and every now and then he ran into a sellsword trying to live up to myth in order to make more gold. Tch.

You Reap What You Sow​

Lord Dunlap had a brother who was just as crazy as him. Lord Morgan Dunlap, while not a cannibal, he did run an unusual plantation with servants that were all women. The story was that he had an Oedipus complex with their mother, Serenity. Rumor has it that he still suckled on her breast long into his adolescent years. He loved his mother so much that after she died, he supposedly kept her body in an airtight casket to preserve her beauty and talks to her every day. All of the servants on his plantation were either coincidentally named Serenity or had some sort of feature that reminded him of his mother. He funded a thriving gang called "The Reapers" in Vos who in exchange gave his plantation protection as well as hired overseers to keep the servants in order. When he received word that his brother had been murdered, Lord Morgan hadn't been too upset over the news as he was about the death of Beatrice. He had been trying to seduce the Lady Beatrice into his bed for years for she had looked exactly like their mother (which was why he figured Tiberius kept her all to himself!).

Furiously, Lord Morgan demanded that The Reapers take their best investigator and find the person responsible. Barely a year after the incident, Tot had been approached by Reapers who sought to capture him and take him to Lord Morgan. They hadn't been successful and the gang resorts to hiring warriors with the skill to rival the One-Armed Swordsman.

Plot Hooks
1. Tot wants to find the person who is sending the Reapers after him (Vos).
2. Tot wants to find Marlene a decent city where she can live her dream being a chef and owning her own restaurant (Extra explained below).
3. Tot wants to be able to afford a laboratory for Duncan so that he can experiment as much as he wants and sell his potions from home. He is certain that the old man can make a handy business (Extra explained below).
4. Tot plans to become rich so that he no longer has to be a sellsword and can just live comfortably for the rest of his life. Unfortunately, his Eld won’t allow him to stay away from the battlefield for too long. He will always desire a challenge to his blade.

Equipment​

Vital Edge: A great sword that only shows itself when Tot draws it from its Void Sheath. It is nearly six-feet in length and a foot in width. The appearance of the sword changes depending on what type of bladed weapon Tot wields in his left hand, and can change in strength not only just based on the level of the wielder but the quality of sword that he wields. Basically, the Vital Edge takes on the same characteristics of the weapon he wields to draw it. If Tot is holding a rusty sword in his left hand, then the Vital Edge has the same performance of a rusty sword despite its deceivingly-cool appearance. Therefore, Tot will choose only the best quality blades to wield. Similarly, if Tot were to wield an enchanted sword in his left hand, then the Vital Edge will adopt the magic properties of the blade.

Sturdy Dagger: It appears to be a simple dagger, but it is actually an enchanted weapon. It’s slotted behind the kite on his right gauntlet and can be used as a tool or offensively. It is six-inches in length and bears a wicked curve. The Sturdy Dagger is named as such because it is enchanted with an extraordinary high durability. The dagger never rusts, its edge never goes dull, and it has allowed Tot to block weapons that would have cut an ordinary blade of similar craft in two. It can block any normal weapon as well as enchanted weapons when an average blade can’t. However, enchanted weapons wear down its magical durability.

Black Iron Armor: Named “Black Iron Armor” for the metal it resembles, this armor is medium-weight and grants Tot a balance between defense and speed. The gauntlet on his right hand is reinforced at the forearm, expanding in the shape of a kite. The kite acts as a buckler to deflect blades, projectiles, and close-call assaults by the enemy.

Abilities​

Flavor Abilities

• Bottomless Pit – It may have something to do with his Eld, but Tot knows how to put food away. He will empty a restaurant if one isn’t careful, and he wouldn’t be against leaving a sucker with the bill. Unlike the digestive system and stomach capacities of Extras, the nutrients and calories he consumes are completely used and absorbed by his body. Depending on how much ToT consumes, his BoE gives his body the ability to compensate often giving him a humorous, and at times a disturbing appearance. A character would probably have to double-take on the warrior. Due to complete anime exaggeration, Tot can appear at times gigantic after banquets, appearing too fat for his armor. After a momentary period of accelerated digestion, he can be seen back to his normal size.
• Heightened Senses – Usually, these abilities manifest when he is within a mile of food or water—but mostly food. Tot can sense food being baked, grilled, fried, boiled—whew! He can smell it. His sense of taste is highly acute so when he eats a poorly-cooked meal it’s the equivalent of someone taking a huge dump in the soup. While, on the other hand, if the food was cooked by a chef worthy of the praise, people might see a reaction they thought they would never see from the swordsman (foodgasm).
• Anime Strength – Wielding a big-ass sword with ease has something to do with it. Extras are more than likely startled by the ground-shattering strikes Tot can dish out with his blade. He can also kick a horse-drawn cart whether it full or empty pretty far. His strength is just nuts in certain ridiculous situations.

Scene Abilities

• Blood Binge – Feeding his Vital Edge the blood spilled by him or his allies, makes the sword stronger and then gives Tot a physical boost to his strength, allowing him to swing his blade with so much ferocity and force that it literally cuts through the air molecules, sending them scattering outwards in lethal bursts. If his blade doesn’t touch you, the razor gusts created from his swings will.
• Vital Edge – This blade only manifests when Tot passes a bladed weapon into his left hand. His left arm will appear to accept the sword, and the sword will transform into it. The Vital Edge is a blood-drinker and will cause any foe cut by this weapon to bleed profusely. Multiple cuts induce hemophilia.
• War Cry – Filled with the spirit of battle, Tot can unleash an explosive roar that will shake any enemy struck by down to their core. The cry acts as a stun, granting Tot that brief hesitation he needs to turn the tables.

Adventure Ability

• Devour – Tot will absorb an enemy attack of devastating magnitude, taking it into his body where the magic or energy goes through a conversion process, changing from the enemy’s Eld to Tot’s. The Eld then empowers the Vital Edge, transforming it into a titanic blade that Tot will slam down upon the earth, sending a chain of explosions rapidly erupting toward the enemy (if they weren’t diced in half by the ginormous blade first) with 10x the enemy’s original power.

Skills

• Survivalist – He’s lived this long. He knows how to hunt, skin, tan, boil, debone, salt, and cook almost any animal. He’s not a chef, but he can make any animal palatable. Not everyone agrees with eating grubs, grasshoppers, lizards, snakes, and rodents, but when money’s tight and you’re hungry, you got to make what you can with nature. He also knows how to trap, track, and locate water (if he doesn’t smell it).
• Gourmet – His palate is brilliant. He can taste the ingredients used in food, and he would be able to know if someone spat, shit, pissed, or even put poison in the food. He hopes that there isn’t anything toxic in the food for that would greatly upset his stomach. You know those lactose intolerant people? Yeah, imagine that on the toilet x10. His stomach is rather sensitive to poorly-prepared food.
• Master Swordsman – Tot can use one-handed or two-handed sword techniques. He’s utilized various blades over the period he’s spent being a sellsword. The durability of his weapons don’t always last and so he has to keep his blades in good shape or buy new ones.

Extras:

• Marlene – Utility/Chef – A teenager that Tot came across starving and about to perish in the streets. Ever since he secretly sympathized with her and left her with a sandwich, the girl hasn’t stopped following him. He thinks she’s an idiot for being a chef and yet still managing to starve. They have a sibling relationship, and it isn’t unusual to hear the two arguing. Marlene cooks for her new travelling family, fueling Tot with the nutrients he needs whether he likes the meals or not. When she isn’t cooking, she enjoys singing and will sing in cities or towns for tips. She has to pay off Tot’s protection fee.
• Duncan – Utility/Apothecary – The old man drives a cart with an old black donkey named Abel. On his cart are numerous potions and herbal ingredients that he sells and trades in every city he visits. He is always experimenting with new potions that have mysterious effects. He likes to test his experiments on Tot since he’s one of the few humans strong enough to handle it—actually, “strong” might just be used for flattery. It’s more like “dumb” enough to try them. Duncan and his cart were saved by Tot from bandits along a trade route. He offered to give Tot a ride wherever he needed to go whenever his feet are weary from walk. Regardless, Tot still demands a protection fee and the old man has to pay it despite all the potions he makes for him!

 

[Stalzyn]

Lyden Snow : Incarnation of the God of ice, water and solitude.
I'll make up a Bio soon. Just want to reserve this character for now... if the thread is still open.

 

[kizkiz]

Quick update. I'm Onboarding MsAmative as the 4th member of your Circle. I should have a post out tomorrow. Travel days are usually very productive for me to write.

 

[Deckrect]

Whatever you say,boss.

 

[kizkiz]

So it begins!

Please excuse typos/grammatical errors. I haven't had time for a second editing, but I wanted to get this out so people could start posting if they wanted to. Y'all can huddle up with Aegar at your leisure as outlined in the opening post. Tamilla I assume you'll want to join the Circle, but that's up to you how you approach Aegar. There's breadcrumbs if not meals for all characters based upon their backgrounds.

Let's all just roll with the punches and explore the first beta test of the system.

Thanks for joining me on this journey!

bon appetit!

 

[MsAmative]

Overview​

Name: Vanora Brightwood
Alias:
Role: Ranged
Profession: Ranger
Age: 20
Gender:Female
Race: Nord Human from the Five Cities.
Height: 5’5
Weight: 130
Hair Color: Red
Eye Color: Dark Brown
Physical Description:

Vanora on first glance appears rather ordinary, her long dark red hair sits halfway down her back, and is often found pulled up or falling over her face. Her dark brown eyes, when they can clearly be seen can reveal her mood without any questions or reservations, making her both a terrible liar and incredibly frightening when angry. Her rather petite frame means that her strength is often overlooked, and she is not easily overpowered or outpaced. Her size leads many to assume that she is weak which can be a dangerous assumption. Her profession and work with horses has left no room for weakness or hesitation, and she can often overcome those much larger than herself. Her recent possession of the Blood of Eld has only increased her strength, speed, and intuition making her an even more powerful foe to an unsuspecting victim.

Vanora’s normal attire is basic and focuses mainly on function, often including a simple shift and leather chaps which she is most comfortable with. Unfortunately, the high status of her family often requires that she still fulfill the normal societal and aesthetic expected of women befitting their nobility, and she can clean up well. Her recent inheritance of the Eld has enhanced her ability to conform to her family’s and the other noble’s expectations as she is more easily able to attune what is expected of her.

Visual Description: Vanora

Sexuality: Vanora is a rather normal heterosexual woman, however, she does prefer to lead more than follow and initiate on her own terms.

Personality​

Vanora is more likely to be found among the animals on her family estate than she is with her family or her peers. She enjoys interacting with like-minded people, but she has found that her family and noble peers are usually unable to see her viewpoint. Her ability to empathize with nature and animals has led to her spending more time away from people and with the beings that seem to understand and embrace her. Having spent a large amount of time with the animals on her family’s estate and the woods behind it, she has become adept at understanding behaviors, and she often bases her decisions off instinct and her own feelings of a situation. While she has become an expert at finding the easiest way out of a situation, she has not managed to find a way to avoid them entirely. Vanora's disregard of societal rules has caused much of a rift between her and her family, leaving her to decide constantly between what she wants and what her family desires. Her ability to see the world and how it affects the beings around her had made her seek solutions that better the world as a whole. Often this means sacrificing herself or her own beliefs, and living how her family desires when she is visible to outsiders and the other nobles. Vanora has become accustomed to hiding her true nature while yearning to find a place where she can truly be free.

Background​

Born into a noble family, much of Vanora’s life was predestined from her birth. She was molded into a well-rounded, well-spoken, and (hopefully) beautiful young maiden who would later be married to someone in another noble house that would bring her family more status and wealth. From an early age it became apparent that Vanora would rather be anywhere but among her peers, often slipping out through the servant's passageways when no one was looking or stealing a servant's clothes in an attempt to leave the house in plain sight. When a family or servant would find her missing, she was inevitably not hard to find, often in the stables or somewhere else on the estate surrounded by plants or animals. If asked why she would explain that she felt at peace there with her only real friends. As she grew older Vanora could more easily understand her human counterparts, but she still felt more at home in nature, surrounded by animals.

Known across the barony for their horses, it was essential that each of their children had knowledge of the family trade and riding skill. This was not up for debate. Unlike her sisters, Vanora excelled in her lessons, overtaking their instructors in only a few lessons. While her sisters struggled, horses often anticipated Vanora's wishes, leaving her sisters and her chaperones far behind on the trail. These actions often led to punishment, as no young woman should ever be alone in the barony unprotected but she didn't care. When she did not attempt to slink away on a horse unnoticed she sought out the barn, lavishing attention on the animals. It was there that she found peace and confidants. Most thought her dimwitted or crazy as a result. It didn't help that she would approach unbroken horses without fear. No matter how often people would explain the dangers, she kept approaching the horses like they were frightened children instead of dangerous animals. If anything she was drawn to them. In them, she felt her own feelings echoed back. It was one of these dangerous adventures that brought her Stormlight, a black stallion whose coat was dark and glossy like obsidian. Stormlight's mane and tail were a frothy grey, offsetting the deep darkness of his coat. Stormlight acted like a prince, and many of the wild things of the Black Wood responded in kind. It was Stormlight who protected her most often in the Black Wood as the two ventured farther than any little girl should ever have.

Only one person seemed to understand her obsession and abilities with animals, her family’s main retainer Reginald. Reginald was an adventurer who spent his quiet moments serving her father and training her family's vast herd of horses. Unlike her own family, Reginald accepted her as she was and took her under his wing. He drilled her in all his craft until her own skills surpassed his own. In time, neither the servants nor her family could doubt her command over any horse she laid a hand on. News spread beyond her family's estate and throughout the five cities. Eventually, notable people came, paying exorbitant amounts of money for her services.

At first, her parents fought to deny her, hoping to keep her image as a sweet and submissive young woman, waiting for the right match. During public outings, Vanora was forced to insist that her skills not only didn't exist but were just rumors from rivals trying to hurt her chances at marriage. Some requests couldn't be denied. Reginald was tasked with ensuring Vanora's talents were proven false. Despite Reginald's best attempts to comply with his lord's request, the resulting failures soon caused her family's reputation to tarnish.

The strain of his burden changed Reginald. He became more impulsive and restless. When Reginald announced his decision to leave the service of their family and travel the five cities, Vanora was devastated. She could not fathom how she would survive without him and his support. However, this did force her parents to recognize and accept her skill. The influx of horses gave her little time to contemplate the meaning of his departure. Vanora’s success brought in customers from even beyond the Iron Barony, increasing the wealth of her father. The problem was most of her family felt their own value diminishing, jealousy is a cruel thing. She continues to struggle with balancing her desire for her family's approval and managing their envy, a struggle that threatens to cause a schism in her family. She's begun to think her only way out is to purchase an estate of her own, which may very well be inevitable. ((plot hook 1))

Reginald's death struck Vanora a heavy blow. She'd always felt that they would meet up again. She had begun to cope with his absence from the estate because she had always hoped that their paths would cross once more, but now she would never see him again. In her despair, she leapt atop Stormlight and fled deep into the Black Wood. She wanted to lose herself in the only place that still felt like home. They had spent so much time together there amongst the deep shadows beneath the endless canopies. It was there that Reginald had taught Vanora how to defend herself, how to find a way out and, when to run. Only the wild tribes knew the Black Wood better than Reginald had, and he had made sure that Vanora knew it like the back of her hand.

Vanora came to realize Reginald had passed the Blood of Eld to her. Of course, as any noble she'd been educated about the Eld and inheritance, but her father's Eld was never going to go to her. In many ways, the Wood protected her from the fallout of inheriting a different bloodline. Vanora was able to learn and practice her new skills. She embraced the true power she now held over nature and its creatures.

While being attacked by a dire rat near the water's edge, she stumbled through the brackish water, dropping her staff. While scrambling to retrieve it until she beckoned for help, and a giant barbed crab teetered to her. Using the large shell of the crab as an improvised shield and the barbed tail as a dagger, she was able to fend off the beast. When she did find her staff it had changed. It now had a metal shell headpiece whose barbed tail wrapped around the shaft just like the crab she'd summoned. The staff had also become infused with magic, whose power is heightened within the Black Wood. She's visited the area and fought off many more dire rats, but she's been unable to find their source. ((plot hook 2))

After Reginald’s death, she has been considered his non-biological but legitimate heir. Her inheritance of the Blood of Eld has only reinforced this. As a result, the Iron Baron has accepted her oath of fealty as the next descendent of Reginald's line. She has tried to carry on his legacy and honor his memory. Her deep knowledge of the Black Wood has made her invaluable to his mercenaries.
She has begun to investigate Reginald’s past life before he joined the estate. Reginald never spoke of his life, and she has made it her mission to discover his past and find out how he inherited or came to have his Eld. ((plot hook 3))

Equipment​

Staff of the Seven Shells - This staff holds the incarnate of a Small God of Crabs. It not only provides great protection to herself but she can bless another weapon with its legacy. Nearby shelled creatures flock to her.

Vanora wears a brocade corset befitting her station which hides lightweight studded leather armor. The hidden armor protects against slashing and piercing weapons. Her full skirt, cut down the front for mobility, reveals a set of thin, well-worn leather chaps to protect from abrasions and allowing her to ride at a moment's notice. Hidden in her right boot is a simple but sharp dagger to use as a last resort.

Abilities​

Flavor Abilities

• Dirt to mud - She can change the texture and moisture of the earth. Dirt can become mud, and mud can become baked clay. The range of effects varies depending upon the composition of the earth she's altering. This also gives her limited ability to shape the natural earth. She's able to make improvised balls of mud that explode into pottery shards upon impact, and other basic affects like that.
• Nature's Grace - Nearby animals will warn her of obvious dangers. A bird might chirp a warning of an ambush ahead or fox dart in front of her before she falls into a briar patch. She's also able to call upon animals to aid her in limited ways in keeping with their nature.
• Heart of the Wild - When she is happy flowers bloom, and when she is mad plants wither. Animals mirror her fear, shying away and bolting. When she is calm, all nature around her is at peace.

Scene Abilities

• Sudden Sprouting - She can conjure plant life such as vines sprouting from the ground, entangling and slowing the victim. Another example is a bed of thorns to deter pursuers.
• Earthquake - A localized earthquake damages the surrounding environment. Damage ranges from shaking, falling, shattering, or getting caught in rifts in the earth.
• Shell Shield - The essence of the Small God of Crabs embraces her in its carapace, affording her protection from slashing and piercing weapons for a time. (note: Tied to Staff of Seven Shells)
• Enhanced Weapon - She can enhance the durability and lethality of one weapon that she touches with her staff. Only applies to 1 weapon, or her own, per scene, lasts for 1 scene. (note: Tied to Staff of Seven Shells)
• Hibernation - She can place a magical enchantment upon Extras, putting them to sleep for a time. They sleep the deep winter hibernation of the Small God of Bears. It is best used before combat when trying to avoid a confrontation.

Adventure Ability

• Rising Stampede - A herd of earthen forms bolt from the ground, taking on a crude resemblance to horses. They trample everything in their path. She hasn't tried to use them for anything else yet!

Skills

• Wilderness Survival - She possesses the understanding and training necessary to survive most situations, determining how to best maximize available resources to prolong her life.
• Animal Handling - She is adapt at training and caring for all manner of animals both domestic and wild. She has limited empathy with them, making it easier to communicate her needs to them.
• Etiquette - She is trained in the proper forms of address for all noble titles, how to act at a formal dinner with a Marquette, and the many forms of afternoon tea."

Extras:

• Stormlight - Utility. A willful horse who was likely to have been sent to slaughter if not “tamed” by Vanora. Left at the estate as a last resort, the two have become faithful friends. Named Stormlight for his dark color and personality, he only responds to Vanora. Due to their close nature, Stormlight will often do anything she requests from carrying heavy loads to dealing with overbearing riders and will protect her at all costs.
• Saxson - Utility. Owl who is able to carry messages and scout area ahead, can also provide warning of individuals near by.

 

[HotCider]

At first I was thinking, does the crab staff give a person crabs? And then as I continued reading, I saw the sleep spell and I thought, "Oh man, how awesome that would be to have IRL, or even in-game when a character is having a rough night." Too bad it puts someone asleep for a whole season.

 

[kizkiz]

Sleep tight...don't let the bed crabs bite!

At first I was thinking, does the crab staff give a person crabs? And then as I continued reading, I saw the sleep spell and I thought, "Oh man, how awesome that would be to have IRL, or even in-game when a character is having a rough night." Too bad it puts someone asleep for a whole season.

 

[kizkiz]

We Are Live!!

Okay party people, let's get a post'n! Your starting to make me paranoid! Ask if you have any questions or need any clarification. If it's public then do it here, if it's private then PM me.

The IC is live! Link fixed!

 

[LucianDevine]

Fixed

 

[kizkiz]

Fixed

 

[HotCider]

I read over the post and from what I could understand, Tot and the other heroes mentioned are there in the throne room standing before the king. You said what their roles will be in support of the Third House, and I'm wondering mostly for my character, when he was mentioned to be a hired sword in the mercenary group that was going to help save the Third...does that mean he already has been recruited to join the Third House? I also don't really know what to do there besides make Tot leave? Are we to just do a time skip or something?

 

[kizkiz]

The heroes meet up at the inn...

It's a little classier than having the Heros stumble on each other at an inn somewhere. Both Kosta and Vanora have in their history responding to the call of something related to the Iron Baron. So I wrapped that up. I saw this an opportunity for the group to chat without leaving out Tamilla (who needs to join your group). It was a little messy to get everyone together without doing some extensive PM or side-posts getting everyone to one place.

After reflecting upon things, perhaps I should send PMs to everyone anyway to catch them out OOC so this isn't so jerky. Let me go do that

 

[HotCider]

Is there food or a banquet at this gathering? Because if so, I see Tot busying himself there.

 

[kizkiz]

Food in the Great Hall

The Court is a medieval court, which goes on the whole day. So while there isn't anything eaten in the courtroom, there are refreshments for Elite and Nobles in the Great Hall

It will be decked out with many bistro style cocktail tables

Food served would be anything that can be easily eaten with one hand without utensils. A great deal of back room dealings and negotiations happen during the 11th day when the Iron Baron is at Court. It has something of a festive atmosphere through all of Nord as a result.

As a member of the Third House, you do have access to the various servants and pages if you need to send "relatively" secure communications between people. Unless dismissed, you'll probably have 1 or 2 of such people following in your wake while in the castle today.

 

[HotCider]

The Court is a medieval court, which goes on the whole day. So while there isn't anything eaten in the courtroom, there are refreshments for Elite and Nobles in the Great Hall

It will be decked out with many bistro style cocktail tables

Food served would be anything that can be easily eaten with one hand without utensils. A great deal of back room dealings and negotiations happen during the 11th day when the Iron Baron is at Court. It has something of a festive atmosphere through all of Nord as a result.

As a member of the Third House, you do have access to the various servants and pages if you need to send "relatively" secure communications between people. Unless dismissed, you'll probably have 1 or 2 of such people following in your wake while in the castle today.

So, I guess you're saying: "Yes, there's food but nobody can access it unless they're dismissed by the Baron first."

I am finding it very difficult to come up with a starting post for the scenario you have currently set up. But if anyone else manages to get an introduction out, then I'll follow his or her lead. Because I got nothing.

 

[kizkiz]

So, I guess you're saying: "Yes, there's food but nobody can access it unless they're dismissed by the Baron first."

I am finding it very difficult to come up with a starting post for the scenario you have currently set up. But if anyone else manages to get an introduction out, then I'll follow his or her lead. Because I got nothing.

No, I'm saying people are coming and going all day. If they are Nobles or Elite (e.g. You) then you have a convenient place to duck in, eat, politic, whatever and rejoin the court to keep up with all the big announcements.

Think about that 11th day as like the Supreme Court. All the big decisions that need to be made publicly are done then, but people gotta eat and they gotta deficate. So there's some coming and going.

In other words, post damn it!