Sword Art Online [Light, Bon, Exotic, NC, Extreme]

Started by Sabre, September 10, 2012, 10:30:38 AM

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Sabre


A novel, manga and recently animated series, Sword Art Online is the story of 10,000 MMORPG players who logged into the newest, most advanced online game of the day and, discovering the creator has psychotic delusions of grandeur, become trapped inside unable to log out for almost two years.  Whether you're fans of the series or not, this is a call for anyone interested in an RP setting combining fantasy elements with the knowledge of playing in a virtual reality game (but where death in game means death in the real world).  For a longer synopsis for those unfamiliar with the series, read here:
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
Set in the near future where the latest in VR and neural link technology is married to create the ultimate gaming experience, SAO is the latest and most anticipated game yet.  A completely virtual and fantasy world that players can actually feel, smell, taste and touch.  Logging in is like diving in completely as the game is played not with controllers but with your own mind - the headset intercepts any signals sent to and from the brain and directs them into the player's avatar.  So immersion doesn't begin to explain it.

However, on launch day, when tens of thousands of players log on the first time and get lost in the new world, something goes wrong.  Soon players who are out of gaming time think to log out but find the option has been removed from their menu - without it there is no possible way for the body in reality to get the signal to take the helmet off unless a friend or family member does it for them.  Worse, everyone receives a terrifying and perhaps even exciting ultimatum from the game master and creator: there is no escape except through defeating the endgame boss.  That's 100 floors and 100 dungeons and bosses to clear, and each floor is the size of a small county full of dangerous wilderness, major towns and small villages.  And to complete the nightmare, the final threat is made: dying in the game and losing one's avatar will send an immediate signal to the headset in real life to fry the player's brain and kill him or her for real.  Trying to take the helmet off will trigger the same fate, so after the hundredth or so death by accidental helmet removal by family a state of emergency is called and the players now carefully watched, but no one is able to do anything from their side.  The players are on their own, and months go by as they continue to struggle in the virtual world.

So the setting is a less than traditional MMO with major consequences.  In the first month alone 2,000 die due to the difficulty in the game, and soon only 10-30% of players actually brave dungeons and the front line while the rest cower in towns trying to get by as best they can.  Players must sleep and eat even in this virtual world, and this costs money they can only make providing trade, services, or treasure and monster hunting in the wild.  There is no real magic system in the game either.  Instead it's a system built completely around Sword Arts - physical attack skills and combos unique to each different type of weapon and sometimes unique to singular weapons themselves.  There are an infinite number of sword arts and an infinite number of passive and active skills as well - blacksmithing, cooking, etc.  NPCs function with advanced AI parameters that let them slowly develop and learn over time and interaction with players, though they cannot die and respawn as blank slates if killed.

Now, I've got my own ideas on potential angles this game could tackle, but I'd really like to know if there are enough people here interested in the setting to play either a free-form group game or maybe something system-based (what system exactly I'm not sure, though I'm considering a modified Feng Shui).

Matthew

Ooh... a friend recently got me interested in this series, and I remember thinking it seemed like it could be a rather fun premise for an RP... Put me down as interested ^_^

azzmeister89


Cindred

“When a fantasy turns you on, you're obligated to nature to start doing it - right away”

Lithium


MzHyde

Sounds like a non-terrible version of .hack or something. I like it! If someone dies do they get to reroll? Will it be system based or freeform?

Sabre

One can think of it as a more action/adventure orientated .hack setting, where the focus will be more on survival and exploration of the epic castle of Aincrad slowly working towards the lofty goal of clearing floor 100 to escape back to the real world.  I don't see why a player couldn't roll a new character if their first or second dies of course, because why not?

Right now I'm undecided on whether this should be completely freeform, implement an unobtrusive system that simply keeps players from power creeping, or homebrew an original system altogether to deal with the fast paced action of SAO battles.

As for plot I'm leaning towards a very low level start near the beginning of the series, on floors 3-25 to begin with.  The players either form a party of friends that know each other in RL (everyone's avatars looks just like their real selves, making this easier) or they are desperate new recruits drafted into the ranks of the Aincrad Liberation Front, or the Army, which is a massive guild set up to organize the chaos that erupts after so many people die in the first few weeks.

azzmeister89

if your planning to add a system to the rp you will need a gm too play all the monsters and distribute ex points when a fight is over, that in itself for this game in particular will be quite the task so i advice make this free form but everyone can keep an eye on each other to stop people god modding

MzHyde

Or make it some kind of really simple system based on the dice roller here or something. I'd be willing to learn a system for this if someone wants to teach, though.

azzmeister89

that makes sense although someone will have to explain to me how the dice rolling thing works on here

Matthew

I'm not opposed to a system myself, I'm familiar with a few and I'd be willing to learn a new one for this :)

Tom90

I started watching this after seeing the thread, so... if it starts; sure I'm in.

azzmeister89

it is an awesome anime, based off of a light novel, shame how it ends but i wont spoil it for anyone

Tom90

Yeah, I am watching the second episode now and I think it is really good.

azzmeister89

just wait until the latest two episodes, now they are awesome


Awesomesauce


Haztur

sounds like a cool idea

and for freeform or simple systems Strands of Fate or other Fate system works very well.
"When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained"
-Mark Twain

azzmeister89


Kaisude

#19
I'm in been following the anime it's awesome as crap. So I am definitely interested for sure. Also I would be willing to learn a system, I have no knowledge of it though.

Vaulera

I'm in, so in. Sword Art Online is awesome, I don't have any experience with system roleplays, but I would be willing completely if it were a SAO game.

Cindred

Ill be dropping out of this. I don't think I can stretch myself to that many RP's.
“When a fantasy turns you on, you're obligated to nature to start doing it - right away”

NotoriusBEN

I'd be interested in playing as well.

for a dice system it could be as simple as both players rolling a d20, highest roll wins.
-or-
a little more difficult. give the players a d8, a d10, and a d12 that they assign to stats like smarts, fighting, and grace.
depending on the conflict, the players roll their die in that respective stat. some people are better at fighting, others at smarts, but the die range still lets the disadvantaged person have a chance to win.

azzmeister89

A dice system like that wouldn't make sense unless were all planning to be player killers

Sabre

Personal interactions between players and NPCs probably don't require any sort of system to manage.  Maybe a simple dice roll, or just a flat stat requirement for success, for certain skills would suffice.

The real question is how do we handle battles against monsters, NPCs and, if it comes to that, each other.  If this is an open game where each of us is our own GM able to directly control what happens, we'd be responsible for keeping each other in line so that someone doesn't go overboard and become a second Kirito.  If there is a GM, then he controls monsters and NPCs at least only during combat scenes, and the outcomes could be decided by a system or by simple GM fiat based loosely on player stats and narrative direction.