A human and a dwarf walk out of a bar...(Recruiting for a tale of epic fantasy.)

[AndyZ]

How does the soul work in this game?

If the soul is the life force, the animating spark of personality and the nature of conscious effort, perhaps a necromancer would split off pieces of his soul in order to establish such an effect?  Or, a dead body contains soul residue, which makes it perfect for bringing back to life via energy, but  needs help being reanimated?

Combining both of these things, and saying that the body is the only thing really capable of hosting a soul shard and that the residual soul energy is what makes it necessary, a logical consequence of extending one's reach.

The more powerful the necromancer, the more he'd be able to split up his soul, making finer and finer shards while still achieving the same effects of mindless undead.  However, doing so would almost certainly leave him more and more emotionless, heartless and vile himself.

If such things by nature don't exist in the world, fine fine, but thought I'd throw in some possible metaphysics to explain necromancy ^_^

[Phoenixrisen]

Hmmm, but that is how I also play my necro. Everything has to be in available supply. I use undead control with his blood, since I believe any other blood as a supplement would make the undead harder to control/berserk; and one can only bleed so much. (Yes, I do play my necros morbid) Though undead running amuck could be amusing as well, my character would probably find dry humor in that.

Any who, did you wanted sheet PM or posted here?

Which ever you're more comfortable with is fine by me. :D

Andy, thanks for the points to ponder, and I likely shall, but I think Drake and I should be able to work out something amenable to him and the world. It's only that even if someone figured out a way to truly work it out, necromancy is a taboo thing, in a religious and a social context, but that's actually pretty standard. It could certainly lead to the possibility of some interesting plot points where his character arc was concerned though.

May have to throw a tiny wrench into my perception of the world for the sake of the story cause I really think I could use a character like that...

*goes into plotting mode*

There are just so many ways I could mess with him. I mean having an angry deity is far from the end of the world. It can spice things up. Besides, I think The Cat would be on his side... Could certainly give me points to move things along on.

I'm hoping by the time we reach the Shadow, to have found a way to make every character so intrinsically necessary, at least as long as their in the story, that it would seem to any hearing the tale like the workings of fate. I believe my players deserve no less, and it would lead to a better story ultimately.

Now I'm rambling, so I'm gonna stop.

[AndyZ]

Oh yeah, you're not forced to use my idea by any means, and I don't think my character would really know either way.  The idea just came to me and I thought it'd help the brainstorming process to share it.

For my char, I'm thinking she gets into some sort of trouble where she accidentally destroyed something or burned someone's house down.  Maybe she ran off somewhere in order to try to escape and the NPC followed her, leaving other PCs the chance to intervene and therefore meet up with her?

[Phoenixrisen]

Certainly possible. Though it might be just a little bit before we could work that in. In any case, could we please keep OOC chat in the OOC? I'm not sure all the approved players look in on here, and they're who we want to be working story details out with. ;D

I feel a little bad when the recruitment thread gets bumps that aren't about recruitment or character creation when there's already an OOC.

[Sephiriel]

Are you still looking for players? I'm quite interested in this.

[Phoenixrisen]

Of course. ;D

New players are always welcome. We're getting quite a lovely group as is, but I have no issue starting a second IC thread if necessary. I don't think we're quite to those numbers yet though.

I do want to make sure that you're aware that this is a game in progress, though we haven't gotten all that far yet, so there's nothing to worry about there. Please don't be daunted by it. We've actually only just reached our second page in the IC. Most of the posts are longer, so it looks like more than it actually is. ::)

So yes, certainly, if you're interested post me a character sheet. Here is fine, via PM is also accepted, whichever you're more comfortable with. Any notes, including, "You're character is awesome, accepted as is," will be via PM though, to keep this thread from getting cluttered with cross talk about characters. If you have any character creation questions though, this is certainly the place for them. Those don't count as cross talk. I'm sure if you have a question, others will as well. If not now, eventually.

This ends my rambling. ;D

[Drake Valentine]

Now maybe I can finish my app. Saturday was busy day/night and only got history and equipment/powers to complete.

*Breathe.* And finally I present Karath Hokem. Modified him a bit here and there since he was one of my older characters, but still basic concept. This did come out as 5 pages on word when writing, so forewarning there.

Basic Information:

I am called,
Karath Hokem
I am
Nineteen
I would identify myself as
Human. What, humans can’t have hair and eyes like mine? It is a new spell, called exotic-tis-nism, maybe you should try it sometime. (Half-Nymph / Half-Unknown)
I earn my keep by
Poison. Everyone likes poison, right? It can be delicious or bitter, but it still paralyzes and kills all the same. And taboo magic. (Necromancy)
I consider myself to be
Either. Sometimes pretending to be a girl can lure others into false security. Though I have dangly parts so I am male.

Appearance:

Others think I look
I pay no attention to what others think, whether it comes to my appearance or else what.
My hair is
Ivory.(From nymph blood)
My eyes are
Amethyst (Inheritance Unknown)
Height and Weight:
None of your business. (5’8” / 130lbs)
If I were describing myself in a story I would say...
I don’t describe myself to blind people.
( The youthful lad’s build is scrawny, but not necessary, completely gaunt in stature. Karath’s faintly, tanned flesh holds a smoothness to it, his legs and chest alike bare from any bodily hair. Even the old saying befits his oval face, smoothed as a baby’s bottom, and quite so at that. The only facial hair he could be considered to have would be those thin, slightly bushed, ivory eyebrows of his and nothing more; yet, these only add up so far to give him that girlish appeal. No scars are visible upon his skin, no bruises, as if he has been pampered through childhood or rather he may of strayed from most conflicting paths with other species in his life. Those hands of his hold a soft grip to them, unshaped from that of a worker’s hard grip, giving him more of a silken touch on contact of an individual’s body. What does put the icing upon the cake is the way Karath wears his hair. Ivory locks, both long and short, could be seen cascading themselves down over his forehead, the tips of his hair passing or touching the margin of those brows of his. The rest of that hair of his is tied back into a ponytail, which length meets its end halfway down along the youth’s spine. Any abnormities he possessed in looks could be reflected towards the unnatural color of his hair and eyes alike, those eyes of his consisting of a bright amethyst hued. The reasoning behind this is quite explanatory, Karath isn’t, how one should say, human. He is unsure if he even has human blood in him; though that of being half nymph contributes greatly towards his rather, dashing, feminine looks and even grace alike.

As for the way he dresses, well you could say it is enough to rouse suspicion. Usually one could find him clad in a black, necromantic robe, where the bottom of the hem of cloth could be seen dragging along the ground. The clothing itself is enough to hide nearly every aspect of his body, save for his face and hands. What he wears underneath that robe of his is nothing more than rags of cloth, suitable for a peasant’s attire. Those boots upon his feet nearly worn out, the, God only knows how far the boy had to travel upon his feet alone, walked such great distances by himself, which inevitably lead to the heels nearly coming off of his boots. Even the previously mentioned robe that he wears had lost its glamour as well, the bottom of it covered in grit, dirt, mud and anything else alike. The fabric worn out, its texture close to being ruined from the constant rain it had to endure when the lad was a long way from any shelter.

Although, beauty itself is also in the eye of the beholder, given this above factor it is apparent that everyday he isn’t necessary clean, as far as his body goes. In fact, it is quite common for him to be dirty and thus he doesn’t have all the time in the world to keep a ‘nice’ image for himself. Of course, he does try to in the least, given the nymph in him wouldn’t have it any other way; though on other days one might find his lovely flesh tarnish with dirt, his hair bedraggled by filth, tangled in messy tresses. The only thing that may not suffer a cracking in his looks from time to time would be those eyes of his, that always contain their gem like beauty.)

Personality:

I behave as if
… (Like someone old and worn with age and knowledge.)
My favorite things are
Crypts, alchemy, writing, vampires, spiders, and all other dead and undying things. Oh! And berries, I do love my berries, especially the poisonous ones. I saw a man take my whole bag of berries and scarf them down in starvation, then he kept vomiting till all that was coming up was blood. I dub those berries, crimson droplets. 
The things that I can't stand are
Idiots. Heroes. Whores. Idiotic Heroic Whores! And my familiar, the lesser of the other evils, I mentioned, I assure you.
Nothing scares me like
The world filled with rainbows and sunshine and jolly elves frolicking all over the place; where everything is consumed with peace and love and harmony and all manners of evil of that nature.
When it comes to interacting with others I:
Keep my distance, analyze the situation, respond sarcastically when time warrants. Or let my familiar do the talking for me; yes, using her mouth seems to be the only thing she is good at these days.
I believe that:
Death comes and goes. There is no need to tie yourself to moral values, there is no such thing as honor or heroics in death, just a fated end. The strong live, the weak perish, that is the reality of life. Feel free to challenge me on that, I will show you the cruelty of living.

Equipment:

Weapons and Armor:
Karath doesn’t arm himself as others may, he doesn’t have physical combat prowess. He does, however, have magick, but most schools would frown down upon the forbidden arts. Everything has a price that must be paid when dabbling in necromancy. 
Curse:
Curses, a basic principal for all necromancers. There are many types, from weakening to even ’voodoo.’ More often than not for a curse to be placed on an individual, Karath requires something physically belonging to them or on the rarer of occasions, something from himself given to the victim. Cursing can range anywhere between inanimate objects to people and being proficient in this area of magick he is also able to detect anything may be curse. However, he doesn’t have the means to break curses themselves, unless he was the one to create them. Most curses require ample time to perform and various supplies. Karath generally avoids the use of curses as it has no proficiency in open combat.
Bone:
The manipulation of bones, the requirement? Well, bones. Karath can do various things with them at his disposal, bending and warping their properties, transforming and manipulating them into something far more dangerous. Why chicken bones can be turned into deadly needles and unleashed at an individual. A femur can be transformed into a sword, mace, axe, or whatever weapon one desires(Karath personally the use of spears when molding bones into attack though.) A whole corpse could make a lovely suit of armor, but the armor itself would be light and strongly resistant to piercing or cutting attacks(bludgeon and fire is another case entirely.) Also with bodies at his disposal he can use them to manipulate a wall to fortitude himself or others(if he chooses) and unless that is destroyed he can still further manipulate the wall of bones into object of offense. A fascinating technique, but it all has a price. Blood, his or someone else’s; but as always from his blood the spells are more reliable and powerful.
Blood:
There are other tricks Karath uses, he is not just limited to having to have things at his disposal, his whole body is a walking weapon; another reason necromancy is frowned down upon as the user can easily kill themselves if they aren’t careful. Up close physical confrontation is something Karath often tries to avoid, but if he can’t, he can be just as deadly without corpses, bones, or other things nearby. He can ‘rot’ away places upon a victim’s body, but to do this he must focus his dark magick somewhere upon his own figure(usually his hands) and transfer it to his victim’s, blood necessary to control the chaotic magick, but the effects are satisfactory. He can also siphon another’s life, a similarly to how vampires may replenish themselves,  but Karath must physically lay hands on the victim and not being much the warrior type, his only ways to pull this off would be to cripple his opponent or if they were already dying. (Keep in mind that it is impossible to siphon from the undead, even vampires.)
Reanimation:
The bringing back of the dead, but requirements of this too must be met like any other spell. There has to be corpses at his disposal, a basic necessary. There has to be blood to allow control over those bodies, more importantly it must be Karath’s own if he wants access to manipulate the lifeless creatures. Any other blood would place the undead into a frenzy, an amusing concept given situations, but no use to him if he cannot control them. Time is also a factor as the blood itself serves as countdown, A pint is usually more than enough to have control over one corpse for a whole day. Also he can communicate with undead humanoids whether they are under his control or not.
Nature:
Karath is, half-nymph, after all. He does have a natural prowess in nature magick, but he has warped it with Necromancy. He can use vines to wrap around a victim’s body, although they are often tainted from the dark arts and decay as a result. In honestly nature control is pretty useless, unless there are ents or other alternative living creatures for Karath to corrupt. He can communicate with all other non-humanoid undead critters out there.
Familiar:
Karath is always followed with his familiar, most mages do take on some creature or being, but the ties are deeper than having a ‘pet.’ Familiars are permanent, they can’t be unsummoned. A familiar is an extension of the mage, if the familiar dies the mage weakens as a result. A mage can only have one familiar and usually they benefit their pactmacker in some way. What is Karath’s? An impudent, tiny, female imp. More often than not she could be mistaken for a pixie or fairy, but that would be a compliment to the wretched, beautiful creature. She is mischievous in nature, her finer of abilities is possession. She can take control of another’s body, but only if their will can be overcome; it is easier to control frightened individuals than someone pumped up waiting to bash your face in.
I never leave home without:
My..clothes..?  (His journal and familiar- not like he has a choice in the latter.)
When it comes to money I'm:
Money? (What he has he loots off corpses.)

Other Important Stuff:

When I'm scared I:
Tactically retreat.
The thing I want most but would never tell anyone about is:
Divinity.
I'm lonely when:
I do not feel that emotion, because I am never alone. And I don’t mean that in a good way.
It hurts when:
I get hit by something. Being punched, kicked, and whatever else is never a pleasant sensation; nor is being a masochist.
The things you need to know about my past are:
I don’t want to talk about it.
( Karath was born in Eden, he could even be taken into consideration as a bastard child. His mother, though he remembers hardly anything about her other than her being extremely beautiful, took it upon herself to beg to the High Queen to allow the child to stay; though she didn’t allow it. Maybe the rareness of a male having nymph blood in them unsettled something in her or perhaps there was more that met the eye. Instead of having the boy killed- a merciful doing for the rest of the world if she knew what he would become- she had him escorted out of her border once he finally was of age enough to walk and talk.

Whether it was by fate or luck, Karath ended up stumbling in the lands of Alexandria, Sometimes he wonders today on the crossroads if he would of live a different life in Io, perhaps a simple peasant of some sort helping the blacksmiths; but it was willed in Alexandria that he was discovered by a group of adventurers. Being wild and bare, the boy didn’t know what to think of the people nor did they of him, they were dressed in various robes; but to see a strange child wonder aimlessly far out from civilization could easily rouse any suspicion. They decided that it may be best to take him back in Alexia, properly dress him, and study if he had any merit about him.

Would it be hard to fathom that the boy had a strong magical aptitude, something many of the mages were astonished by. Not that he was casting spells at a young age, but he easily grasp the basic principals of magic quickly. As he aged his interest waver in the fields they had to offer. When he discovered an older of tomes in their library, that was where his life hit another bridge. Necromancy, Karath was fascinated with the concept of the dead, enthralled with the idea of poking at the boundaries of life. The first time he was found he was strictly punished, told that this was taboo, that he would have been otherwise kicked out if he had any sense or was from these lands to know of this. He was lucky to get off with a warning, but this didn’t stop him. He study in secrecy, but what gave him away in the end was the familiar exams that he took at fifteen- a considerably young age for most participants.

Most of the students summoned an animal companion, but Karath, Karath pact with an imp. It is often said that the familiar represents its master in some shape or form, to bring forth an evil entity; despite her cutesy image and behavior, quickly warrant him a removal from the school. They thought it best that he be banished from the schools, the path he was taking was presentably a dark one. He was even imprison in the school grounds, though with the aid of his familiar he escaped, taking with him the taboo book they forbidden him about.

For four years he study the tome by his own accord, traveling, experimenting, sharpening and refining his craft. His eyes had seen many things in those four years, his hands had been tainted, and one could question if his heart held any humanity about it to all those he had killed and experimented upon to increase his expertise.)
I wish to go to the Shadow because:
Boredom. Research. Power. Knowledge. It doesn’t really matter, my reasons are my own.  (To find a means to become a God)




And his NPC familiar since I can be vague as I want with her. ;3

Basic Information:

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

I am called,
Stupid, idiot, many mean things my master deems fit. He has yet to properly name me, but you can feel free to compliment me, darling.
I am
How rude to ask a lady her age! (Centuries)
I would identify myself as
I’m a Familiar now. (Imp)
I earn my keep by
I earn my master’s keep by bewitching his enemies.
I consider myself to be
Well I am naked all the time, tell me what you see. (Female)

Appearance:

Others think I look
I don’t know or care.
My hair is
Ebony
My eyes are
Hazel
Height and Weight:
6 Inches Tall. I’m not telling my weight. (Nor am I adding it cause I don’t know how to weigh tiny people.)
If I were describing myself in a story I would say...
(See image.)

Personality:

I behave as if
I deem fit. (Spoilt, impulsive, bratty)
My favorite things are
Shiny things, blood, my Master, pretty things.
The things that I can't stand are
Mean people, rude people, ugly things. I put up with my master cause he doesn’t fit all three.
Nothing scares me like
Going back to my realm.
When it comes to interacting with others I:
Speak my mind.
I believe that:
Whatever my master believes, but me being stupid. Oh and I am pretty!

Equipment:

Weapons and Armor:
Possession: She can possess another’s body, but only if certain conditions are filled. One is if they allow such an act to begin with freely(a doubtful cause.) Two, if they are completely frightened, their will power is usually easier to overcome. Three, in their sleep, but their subconscious also has a possibility to kick out the invader and may wake the intended target.
I never leave home without:
My master.
When it comes to money I'm:
I have no need for money. What am I going to buy? Tiny clothes?

Other Important Stuff:

When I'm scared I:
Hide in my master’s clothing.
The thing I want most but would never tell anyone about is:
To be tall, so I can do all sorts of bad things to Kar-Kar.
I'm lonely when:
I’m never alone.
It hurts when:
I cry. (Sorry, couldn’t help myself.)
The things you need to know about my past are:
I don’t remember. (One because she is NPC. Two, because I figure familiars will usually have their memory wipe in a summoning ritual.)
I wish to go to the Shadow because:
I only wish to go wherever my master wishes to go. I have no choice in the matter.