An Empire Asunder ~ In Need of An Emperor

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

An Empire Asunder

The Introduction

”War is devastation and ruin, predicted and remembered as glory.”

For over three hundred years, the continent of Selice has been torn apart by unending hot and cold wars between the lords of the Selician Empire and the independent nobles of the Grand Duchy. What once began as a heated political dispute over the right to sovereignty, which all involved assumed would be laid to rest within a matter of months, has long since blown into a devastating civil war that has defined countless generations. Entire cities have been levelled into dust in the wake of rapacious hordes, crops no longer grow on lifeless fields watered with the blood of entire armies, and bloodlines as old as the Empire itself have been extinguished – sacrifices to a war started by bickering nobles that none alive today have ever met. Living in a state of total warfare is the norm that has defined the lives of entire generations, punctuated only by brief, unofficial ceasefires when both sides are too depleted to continue fighting – only for open conflict to resume again once one side believes it has licked its wounds enough to press the offensive once more.

However, for the first time in three hundred years, all of that is set to change.

Outbreaks of pestilence and famine threaten to sap the last vestiges of strength remaining between these two titanic nations, while a new power in the south bides its time, like a hungry predator stalking an increasingly weary prey. The two factions have agreed to a peace conference, hoping to bring an end to their centuries-old dispute. But will old enmities make way for new realities, or will the desire to settle old differences tear the continent asunder?

***

Hi, my name is Marissa and I’ll (hopefully) be your GM for this game. The premise of An Empire Asunder is simple. Two competing nations, both with radically different ideologies and a deep seated hatred of one another, have been invited to attend a peace conference in (somewhat) neutral territory in order to bring an end to a long and devastating war. While this peace accord will take the form of a final formal agreement defined by the players, binding the nations together through marriages between opposing houses will go a long way towards bringing everyone together – whether such a marriage is a loveless relationship of pragmatism or your characters manage to find love amongst the enemy is up to you to determine. Also invited is the aforementioned third nation, the Kingdom of Sahal, which threatens to engulf them both if they refuse to set aside their differences and stop beating one another senseless. The players will take the role of various nobles, whether members of the royal family or various other nobles (Counts, Dukes, Barons, etc.). Down below you’ll find some lore on the three kingdoms and some background to the conflict to help you with designing your characters, along with a character sheet which will also offer some suggestions that I hope you’ll find handy. The character sheet of my own character, which you should find in the subsequent post, will also offer you some insights into the location and context of the peace conference.

The game will be a freeform RP and I tend to take a rather laissez-faire approach to roleplaying, meaning that I hope to give you as much creative freedom as possible to shape the storyline however you see fit. Open conflict should be rare, as all monarchs have agreed to ban their followers from fighting on pain of death, although such dictates will not pose a problem for the cunning and discrete individual. However, the weapons of choice for most players will be cunning words, backroom deals and secret alliances based on mutual interest. In the interest of full disclosure, I tend to be woefully forgetful, so if I’ve left out any important information or you just have any questions feel free to ask and I’ll answer them as quickly as possible. I hope you enjoy what I’ve come up with, and I look forward to hopefully roleplaying with you all.

The Factions

The Selician Empire

A refined and cosmopolitan state, the Selician Empire once held the entire continent under its dominion, with the Emperor’s rule stretching from north to south, east to west, and everywhere in between. Originally the Empire only controlled the western half of Selice, a wealthy and prosperous region full of majestic cities and wealthy trading outposts, with constant bickering between the ancient noble houses and a new wealthy class of merchants forcing the Emperor to rule with a heavy hand to maintain order. Seeking to ease the tensions between the old houses who ruled and the “new money” that had acquired wealth and power but lacked noble titles, the Emperor sponsored colonisation efforts in the uncharted eastern regions of the continent, allowing this new class to seek their fortune in the untamed frontier and gain lands and titles of their own. The new nobility in this region were granted a much longer leash in governing their new lands than their western brethren and it wasn’t long before even noble lords began to follow them eastwards in pursuit of further land and power for their respective houses. However, when these lands grew into prosperous and wealthy fiefdoms the Empire began to reassert a greater level of control – when these lands were wild and untamed, it made more sense for the lords on the ground to have greater authority in making decisions than distant Emperors and Empresses, but now that these lands were peaceful and prosperous it only seemed natural that they should be subject to Imperial decree just like everybody else. And while it would have been unfair to impose taxes upon lands being developed entirely out of pocket by enterprising souls, the fact that the east was now amongst the most affluent regions of the Empire made it only fair that they now be subject to Imperial taxation to pay for the services and order that the Empire afforded them. However, the new gentry, long since accustomed to their own independence, chafed at the notion of ceding control back to the Empire – precipitating in a crisis that saw revolts and the eventual secession of most of the east. This secession eventually led to full scale civil war, when the Emperor dispatched military forces to reassert control of the rebellious territories he maintained were legitimately controlled by the Empire.

Imperials believe in strong, central authority and that it is the role of the Emperor to benevolently make decisions for the greater good of the Empire as a whole, even if this comes at the expense of individual fiefdoms. While various nobles rule their own fiefdoms beneath the Emperor and on their behalf, claim to such lands and titles is not hereditary. Immediately after the civil war began, the Emperor instituted reforms allowing himself to appoint the successor to an individual fiefdom whenever a vacancy presented itself, in order to prevent further attempts at secession and insurrection. Theoretically, this means that all nobles and their potential successors are completely dependent on the Emperor in order to claim lands that have been in their families for generations. In practise, however, the Emperor typically honours the claim of the oldest legitimate heir to a deceased monarch, with only a handful of notable exceptions serving to remind the nobles of their place as loyal servants of the Empire. By contrast, the position of Emperor or Empress is a hereditary one, with the throne passing to the oldest legitimate heir of the previous monarch. Imperials tend to view the nobles of the Grand Duchy as vile traitors and self-centred separatists, willing to plunge their lands and subjects into anarchy and disregard the collective good of the Empire as a whole, all the while pleading “sovereignty” in order to maintain a grip on their own power.

The Grand Duchy of Nobles

When the Empire sought to expand into the wild, untamed lands of the east, the Emperor granted a long leash and vast powers to nobles willing to use their own resources to conquer these lands and bring them into the Imperial fold. Almost immediately, enterprising and ambitious nobles, seeking new wealth and stifled by the rigidity of the western Empire pushed forth into the uncharted frontier and, in less than a century, established new fiefdoms that reached as far as the seas of the eastern shore. Unrestrained by Imperial dictates and with only a light guiding hand from the now distant capital, these lords prospered greatly in their abundant and fertile new territories, and rapidly developed affluent cities that rivalled even the oldest in the old Imperial lands themselves. However, when the Emperor sought to reassert control over these quasi-independent territories, the new nobles began to chafe as more and more power was stripped from them and concentrated back towards the capital. The imposition of new taxes, the drudgery of dealing with distant bureaucracies and the gradual usurpation of powers the nobles believed were rightfully theirs all began to take their toll, precipitating in a revolt that saw the secession of some of the easternmost duchies and counties – followed by the entire eastern half of the continent. Despite being independent-minded and interested only in their own holdings, these nobles found common purpose in their cause and need for defence against the Imperial forces sent to reassert Imperial authority, and within months the Grand Duchy of Nobles was formed.

The lords of the Grand Duchy maintain that those living within a particular fiefdom are more qualified to make decisions that best reflect their needs and interests than a distant Emperor residing in a capital half the world away. In particular, they feel that as the Emperor resides in the west and nobles living there have greater ease of access to him, Imperial dictates are always going to reflect the interests of these western lords. As the name implies, the Grand Duchy is headed by a Grand Duke or Duchess, but unlike the Empire this title is not a hereditary one. Rather, each noble within the Grand Duchy will come together and vote for one amongst them to be appointed Grand Duke or Duchess and the official head of state of their confederacy. This titular ruler serves for life, unless impeached, and has been granted a number of powers such as command over all the armies in each fiefdom and the right to negotiate on behalf of all, under the strict understanding that the administration, laws, and day-to-day affairs of each territory will be handled by their individual rulers and not themselves. While the Grand Duke/Duchess cannot meddle into their internal affairs of their fellow lords, and can be removed from office by a two-thirds majority vote, they are not without their powers and often hold the absolute respect and support of the nobles who appointed them in the first place. The independent nobles of the Grand Duchy view the Empire as tyrannical and oppressive, more than willing to trample all over whichever of their inalienable rights stand in the ways of the whims and fancies of whomsoever happens to sit on the throne at the time.

The Kingdom of Sahal

As more and more resources were drawn away to fight on the frontlines, both the Empire and the Grand Duchy were forced to abandon remote villages and distant regions to bandits and other criminals, who took advantage of the lawlessness to plunder at will. Over the course of a hundred years, the entire southern periphery of the continent – a remote region of empty badlands, treacherous mountain ranges and hardscrabble townships – was subsequently abandoned by both governments and the order they maintained, left to be fought over by self-proclaimed bandit kings. Whereas the strategically worthless lands of the south once existed as a hodgepodge of feuding warlord states, with control of various territories constantly shifting as a result of military conquests, changing alliances or treasonous lieutenants, the bickering warlords have since been brought to heel by the most powerful among them. Since this time, the newly minted Kingdom of Sahal has bided its time, growing in strength as it waits to sweep across the continent like a scourge and conquer both the Empire and the Grand Duchy in their weakened state. However, with few resources and constant infighting, the only hope of the desolate south to expand is for war between the Empire and the Grand Duchy to continue until both reach the point of breaking.

The Kingdom of Sahal is ruled by a self-proclaimed High King or Queen, the leader of the most powerful group who is capable of enforcing their will upon their rivals through the threat of conquest. The closest analogue to nobles within Sahal are the various bandit kings who, through control of their own mercenary armies, have been able to carve their own fiefdom out of the south, which they rule with an iron fist. Rather than claiming noble titles, these brigands have resurrected the ancient Imperial title of Warlord – a rank traditionally bestowed by the Emperor in times long since passed upon those who conquered new territories for the Empire – and this remains the standard title for addressing them. However, it is not uncommon for these Warlords to also bestow upon themselves any additional titles that catch their fancy – including the ranks of Duke, Baron, or Count – so long as their opulent accolades do not appear to imply a higher status than the High King/Queen who rules over them. Both Imperial and Grand Duchy nobles alike are united in turning up their noses at the aristocratic pretensions of these common criminals – so much so that the Duchess Grace has invited their representatives to the peace conference to pressure her guests to reach an accord. The Duchess intends the treaty to serve as a show of force to cow their imperial ambitions, but the warlords of Sahal see it as an opportunity to sow dissention and discord amongst their enemies and, if need be, legitimise their claims to the south by convincing one of their enemies to ally with them, rather than with each other.

Character Sheet

Insert Picture Here

Name: Who the hell do you think you are?
Title: Duke of Nukem, Count of Chocula, etc.
Faction: Selician Empire, Grand Duchy, Kingdom of Sahal, or independent.
Age: Be ye smooth-faced or wrinkle-skinned?
Sexual Orientation: Just for the reference of other players, lest someone tries to stick their thing inside someone else’s thing and it just becomes terribly awkward for everyone involved.

Goal: What is the ultimate goal of your character in entering the peace conference? Do you seek to forge peace amongst one another or do you hope to derail the proceedings? Or do you have another end in sight? For example, you might chose to make a character who seeks to form an alliance through marriage to protect their weakened fiefdom, or perhaps you seek revenge against another character who has wronged you during the war, or maybe you even seek to defect to the enemy. Be as creative as you want here. While the in-universe characters may or may not know about your aspirations, if you also want to keep your goal a secret from their out-of-universe writers feel free to PM me so I know for my own reference. 

Personality: A description of the personality traits of your character.

Appearance: I know it’s a little redundant to ask for this since you’ll most likely be including a picture of your character as well, but just a short description of your appearance would be appreciated.

Biography: While I’m not one to set a word or paragraph limit, I do ask that you try to be as detailed as physically possible. The more details you include, the easier it will be for other players to determine how your characters will interact and whether they have any shared history together that makes the story more interesting. While I’m far more interested in quality than quantity here, I do reserve the right to ask you to pad it out a little more before being accepted if it feels a little bit lacking.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Name: Grace St. Clair
Title: Duchess of Castiana
Faction: Officially the Duchy of Castiana is part of the Empire and Grace is an Imperial vassal. Unofficially, she is independent in all but name.
Age: 21 Years Old
Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

Goal: Having been forced to flee her ancient ancestral homeland during her earliest years, and witnessing the terrible cost paid in blood to reclaim it, Grace is determined to hold her city at all costs. While she remains at least nominally loyal to the Empire for its assistance in holding Castiana, she would just as readily defect to the Grand Duchy or declare her independence if she believed that it offered the best chance of ensuring the unending rule of herself and her noble line. As the last surviving member of the House of St. Clair, she also seeks to restore her family to both abundance and greatness, and seeks a partner that can offer her security and a bloodline as proud as her own.

Personality: Aristocratic in her bearing and possessed of elegance, refinement and wit, Grace is the very model of a St. Clair noblewoman. Well versed in diplomacy and military tactics, she is also rather proud, occasionally bordering on arrogant, particularly when it comes to her noble lineage. However, Grace is perhaps best known for her fiery independence – she refuses to bow to anyone, and even with the presence of the Royal Family in her domain she insists on not bowing before them in order to reflect her status as the neutral host of the peace negotiations. She also possesses a rather sharp tongue and a fiery temper, famously shouting humiliating insults at enemy nobleman trying to take her city from her. While she might return an insult levied at her with a playful quip of her own, she is quick to anger at any perceived insult against her noble House – unless such an insult is aimed at her deceased father.   

Grace is a woman caught between two worlds. On the one hand, the people of Castiana and the House of St. Clair have always been independent-minded in their sensibilities, sharing many of the values of the Grand Duchy. On the other hand, close ties between her House and the Imperial Royal Family prevented the Duchy from seceding when the war broke out, and a constant Imperial military presence on her border fiefdom has quashed any future possibilities of defection – at least, until they were forced to clear out in preparation for the peace conference, leaving only her loyal forces within the castle walls.

Appearance: Well known for her physical beauty, Grace has pale skin, piercing blue eyes and flowing blonde hair, typically tied in a simple ponytail so as not to get in her way during battle. When not clad in lightweight, flexible armour, she often wears dresses adorned in the blue of House St. Clair; elegant and beautiful, yet practical and easy to get out of in the event that she quickly needs to change back into armour. Her frame is rather petite, and she is notoriously thin; eating very little, especially since the death of her brother. Despite this, she is nevertheless in perfect health, and moves with lithe grace in both metal and cloth.

Biography: Had she been born a few centuries earlier, Grace St. Clair would have inherited a thriving city situated along a nexus of important trade routes, at the very centre of the continent itself. Today, however, Castiana is located at the very frontlines of the civil war – the last great city remaining on the border that hasn’t been reduced to rubble. While she was originally born in Castiana, Grace was separated from her homeland at the tender age of 5, when forces of the Grand Duchy successfully conquered the city and forced her family to flee into exile. Consumed with shame and embarrassment at losing their ancestral home, and refusing to be remembered by history as the man who drove the House of St. Clair into ruin, her father, Duke Raymond, became obsessed with reclaiming the Duchy. Grace herself was commonly neglected and ignored by her father as the stateless nobles constantly roamed between fiefdoms, attempting to drum up support for a counteroffensive. Her sole companionship in this lonely time came from her older brother, James, who served as her one and only friend.

Despite near-constant Imperial sieges to Castiana, Grace would not see her homeland again until the age of 18, when her father forced her into a loveless marriage with the Count of Ostia, Julius Reinhardt, in exchange for the support of his armies. Count Reinhardt was a merciless, pitiless brute of a man, who viewed his new wife as more of a trophy than a partner – a bauble to be worn on his arm to show how even once great Houses such as the St. Clairs would be reduced to bowing before his comparatively meagre House. Fortunately for her, her much hated husband would be slain in the battle that saw Castiana restored to her father’s hands. Her father himself would subsequently die during an outbreak of pestilence mere months after reclaiming the city, dying content in the knowledge that his dream had been realised and his heirs would claim their rightful place upon the throne. The Emperor was swift in legitimising the claims of the powerful House of St. Clair to the Duchy of Castiana, and her brother was named Duke by Imperial decree as soon as news spread back to the capital of his father’s demise. The two then ruled their home jointly, restoring the defences and resisting countless more sieges together.

A year later, her brother would be killed in a dual with a Grand Duchy noble during yet another siege of the city. Consumed with rage and grief, Grace took to the battlements and lifted her skirt right in front of the enemy army, declaring “You may have slain one St. Clair, but do you see this? I have the means to produce a dozen more of our line, and each shall avenge this stain upon our family honour a thousandfold!” She then proceeded to rally the defending troops to deliver a crushing and humiliating defeat to the Grand Duchy forces. Grace was subsequently named Duchess of Castiana, and under her leadership the city remains intractable to any attempts at invasion, earning the begrudging respect of even the most hardliner members of the Grand Duchy. This respect, combined with her city’s location on the border, made it the only agreeable choice for all parties to host the peace conference and Grace is determined to ensure that, no matter the outcome, her and her city ultimately prosper.

[Hercinia]

I skimmed through it (I'm at work) but I'm going to say that I'm interest in this game.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

I'm glad to hear it. And don't worry, feel free to take your time. I've just posted up my character sheet, which provides a few more nuggets of lore about the setting so feel free to skim through it whenever you have time. I'm about to head to bed, but if you have any questions just ask and I should be able to get to them tomorrow morning.

[Strifesblaze7]

I may be interested

[Odanrav]

Think I'll say I'm pretty interested as well. Really appreciated the amount of depth and detail you lent to the background and lore of this. If I had any questions I guess they would be as it pertains to differences between the three kingdoms besides the political ones. As in, is there a great cultural or ethnical difference between the Empire and the Grand Duchy, or even Sahal for that matter? Does slavery exist in one of, if not all of the realms? Any other tidbits like that that can add to the differing nature of the 3 realms. Beyond that, my only curiosity is if you envision a overarching plotline taking effect, or if you plan to allow all of the subplots to take their course and see where that takes the thread.

My first inclination was to be a high ranking Warlord in the southern kingdom, possibly a legitimate rival to the High King, or at least rumored to be so (but for the time being acts loyal). Might be inclined to take on a secondary role as well should the need for more holes to be filled arise, just to let that be known. I do so love games of political intrigue :). Anyway, great work so far on this and I'm excited to see where it goes.

[Shjade]

Well. Shoot. To be honest I don't know if I should throw my hat in the ring for this for a variety of reasons...but I couldn't not at least write up a character sheet when I knew I had the right look in mind for one right away. So what the heck.

Name: Koroga
Title: Warlord ("Let the folk with more coin than common sense call themselves pretty things. I need none of it.")
Faction: Kingdom of Sahal
Age: 32
Sexual Orientation: Bisexual. There are rumors of rather unconscionable acts of this nature that go on among the bandits of Sahal, but really, who wouldn't expect that kind of tale-telling from nobles with regard to their "inferiors?"

Goal: Horribly abuse the hospitality of Castiana by imbibing far more than her share of the local supply of wine while she has the opportunity.

Real Goal: This, too, is a raid, in a sense. There can be no direct rape and pillage but there certainly is room enough to bring back a good haul. The way the war in the north has gone thus far garnering sufficient support from either side would most likely result in both sides crumbling under the weight of the Warlords driving forward into those "noble" lands. While it would be ideal to sway the Empire to their cause, given the rather more paranoid nature of the Empire's pattern of rule in recent times it seems far more likely that she'll be able to hook the Duchy into a scheme of crushing the Empire with the help of Sahal's fighting strength; then it would simply be a matter of picking apart the remaining Dukes as they find themselves scattered across far too much territory to defend. This war is, after all, two factions fighting over the land that contains both of them. They simply lack the manpower to assault into enemy territory and defend their homes at the same time. Her heart bleeds for them. Honest. 

Personality: Koroga isn't one for games. Oh, she'll play them, don't get me wrong, but she plays to win and she plays for keeps. Where some Warlords have trouble stringing an intelligible sentence together (and this goes for Koroga herself if her temper's hot enough), Koro's well enough educated to maintain the semblance of a proper conversation if need be, at least when the topic is one with which she's familiar: warfare, murder, thievery, dance, mysticism, a slew of other subjects the nobility no doubt considers too crude to be worthwhile.

At the foundation, Koroga thinks of wealth as the enemy and, by extension, so is anyone who has it. The Dukes, the Imperials, all these high-class bastards who think themselves so much better than everyone else for having a stranglehold on the things everyone needs or wants. They haven't earned it. They don't deserve it if they can't keep what they've got with their own two hands. You don't get handed anything in Sahal for your blood or your paperwork. You get what you take. You keep what you hold. That's the way it should be. That's the way it is.

Appearance: Koroga's age shows mostly in scars. When the majority of your life has been spent keeping yourself in as close to peak physical condition as possible just to stay alive you tend to shed years through stress and injury more than putting them on in smile and frown lines. She's a pretty continuous shade of mocha brown from head to toe and every inch of that that can be toned up is. She's not rippling with muscle - that kind of bulk would just get in the way, slow you down - but there's no flab hanging onto those abs bisected by a darker tan scar from some old tearing blade's work, nor excessive roundness along the limbs practically blanketed with a combination of healed slashes and twisting tattoos, the ink work interrupted by those smooth dimpled lines in more than a couple of places. Without the marks of war on her face detracting from its features she might, by some standards, be thought pretty. Heavy-lidded eyes of a brown so alive it's nearly red in the right light, rather well-maintained skin considering her lifestyle...but the scars are there, including a small notch in her tongue no doubt caused by her own teeth. If there was a lifetime in which Koroga could have played The Pretty Girl, this one isn't it. Not particularly modest, either, at least not comparatively: where the nobles show up in their gowns and their suits and all that stuffy trash, Koroga tends to dress in a manner that flaunts her various markings: chest wraps that leave her arms entirely bare, sarongs that show nearly all of one leg or the other through the open space beneath their knot, sometimes just a tabard held in place with a sash. (This is, of course, when not preparing for a battle; Warlords might be uncouth, but they're not too stupid to know the value of armor, hardened leather at the very least.) Her hair is a dark red, almost black in places, or else it is black with some kind of red color added into it; it's hard to say one way or the other.

Biography: "You wanna know how you end up with bandits? I'll give you a hint: it's not the life any kid grows up dreaming about. No sane kid, leastways. You never ask some pup, 'Hey, whatcha wanna be when you get big,' an' hear him say, 'I wanna fight over scraps just to stay alive! I wanna hafta hide from all the people who think they're good guys an' say I'm not one of them, an' can't be one of them, 'cause they'll try to kill me if they see me where they don't want me to be! I wanna never have anybody want to be around me or ask me for favors or even talk to me! I wanna be a bandit!' It doesn't happen. So how do they end up that way?

"You bastards.

"You force us into this waste of life and say we're the criminals for it. We're criminals for not agreeing to just lie down and die because we're not wanted. Because we're different. Because we're outcasts. That makes us the outlaws and you the righteous folk for casting us out. That's how this happens.

"That's how a girl barely big enough to even lift a sword, let alone swing it, ends up in the middle of nowhere with her father's corpse for company, her mother carted off to gods know where to do I don't even want to know what to pay off her family's "debt" for living. That girl gets by on sheer luck, picked up by slavers to sell her off in the southlands for a few coins. Oh yes, being enslaved was lucky, that's the life I have to thank you for. The life that, instead of ending for lack of water right then and there, got extended by servicing weapons and armor at a blacksmith's shack in some place you've never heard of and would never deign to visit if you had. And don't act like you weren't expecting to hear worse when I said "servicing." I know all about the work your kind have for young slaves.

"Luckier still that I'm not the type to just give up. If that was my lot in life then I'd be damned if I didn't make something of it. I put my heart and soul into that work, menial as it was, until it wasn't so menial anymore, until my keeper had to respect what I could do, how important I was becoming to his work. Things took their logical course after that. See, courtly expectations of women don't really show up much down south. We care more about what you can do than who you are. What I could do was cut down the idiots who tried to burn us out of house and home. That got me some respect. Turning out to be an accomplished raider when those fools' Warlord offered me a spot in his party? That got me a chance for something more. Something better. And I've been taking those chances to climb ever since.

"Yeah, you can tell just looking at me it hasn't been an easy road. You people make war over stupid political decisions and throw other people into the problems you make for yourselves. We're a lot simpler down here: we do what we have to do to get what we need, what we want. We take care of our problems ourselves. If other people want to help us, that's on them. You won't see me pushing some poor sot out in front to die for me; what you'll see is a line of those men at my back because they know I'll get them what I say I'll get, as long as they're there to get it with me.

"You people call yourselves noble. We're the ones who live that way.

"Get this useless meat out of my tent; I've got to get ready for the meeting. If they end up saying something suicidal I want to be there to hear it myself."

[Odanrav]

Name: Xhan Torrus
Title: Warlord of The Blackreach
Faction: Kingdom of Sahal
Age: Mid-30’s
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual

Goal: To anybody looking from the outside in, they would assume Warlord Xhan’s only motivations to be fighting and fucking. And they wouldn’t be completely wrong in those assumptions. He is notorious throughout the southern realm for being a man of fierce bloodlust and a even greater lust for women. Yet despite his seemingly complete loyalty to the High King of Sahal, many whisper the Warlord has plans to depose him. And as for the farce that is the peace summit, Xhan simply wishes for it to be over and done with so the war, and the fun, can once again commence. And hopefully this time the High King will listen to his advise, and march the southern armies north. As an aside, the journey into Imperial lands provides him with the opportunity to conquer a few northern cunts as he has always wanted. Though he would have preferred going north as part of an army, and not a emissary for piece. Regardless, he plans to make himself well known to the whores of this place called Castiana. He has a thought towards taking a wife or two back with him when he returns to Blackreach.

Personality: The powerful Warlord of the Blackreach is rude and vulgar at the best of times, and abrasive and confrontational at most times. When meeting Xhan Torrus, no man should expect a lord’s courtesy. Xhan respects and admires few men, and even them are not beyond his taunting. By all accounts Xhan is a deadly warrior in his own right, though his own hubris leads him to believe he’s nigh unbeatable. Seldom does he worry himself with political bickering and things of that nature tend to bore him to tears. His intellect for military strategy stands opposite his blunt misunderstandings of the political battlefield, his great weakness.

Women are held to low standards in Xhan’s eyes. Only useful for breeding and tending to a homestead, or other menial tasks. He finds it foolish that northern men and some southerners allow themselves to be led by women, and thus think of them as little more than women. Xhan also has few qualms about enslaving his fellow man, particularly the women and children of conquered lands formerly belonging to rivals in Sahal. 

Appearance: Xhan is a tall, imposing brute of a man. His body is sculpted in muscle and marred in scars from dozens of battles, great and small. Short cut medium brown hair sits atop his head and across his jaw and lip, giving him a heavy stubble he rarely takes the time to shave off. His eyes are a light brown color, slightly lighter than that of his hair. Typically, Xhan wears medium to heavy armor, and is never without his trademark great sword flung heavily across his back.

Biography: Xhan’s story begins with his father, Xhoro. Who was a freed slave risen to great prominence thanks to his own skill in battle. Xhoro challenged the Warlord Maylon, his former master, to a duel and handily defeated him. All of his followers then flocked to Xhoro's command. Xhoro began to move his people west, to the wild lands known as The Blackreach. A large craggy peninsula jutting out into the western sea that was home to dozens of small warring clans, all vying to be the rulers of the lands. In time, all of them were either destroyed or surrendered to Xhoro's will and he proclaimed himself the first true Warlord of The Blackreach, taking the name of Torrus as his family name. In his old age, he finally was able to sire a son, Xhan, to pass on his legacy, and also commissioned the construction to begin on his new line’s seat of power, The Blackfort. Which was located on the edge of a sheer faced cliff that bordered with the sea. Xhoro would die three years before it’s completion, and his heir only twelve at the time but already showing great promise in the art of war.

The son would grow into becoming just as fearsome a warrior as his father, as Xhan quickly established himself as a force within Sahal by winning decisive battles at the ripe ages of sixteen and nineteen against rivals in his own lands. He also established to his people that his cruelty and severity knew few bounds for those who apposed him. In both uprisings, Xhan put every male of the conquered family to the sword, ending the line abruptly. And then married the daughters of the defeated warlords, enslaving the remainder of the household. These actions derailed any future attempts to supplant him as the true Warlord of Blackreach.

The years passed as Xhan ruled from the Blackfort, only riding out to face another rival should the High King in the east call for his men, or to deal with small matters in his own lands. Biding his time and slowly building a army that numbered over ten thousand strong. The Torrus family would grow large as he took five wives and sired eleven children (so far), the oldest of which only being ten. Xhan is assumed to have a great number of bastard children scattered across Blackreach and farther east as well, though he has shown no desire to raise them as his own and only recognizes the children he has with his many wives. In recent years, Xhan has risen to become one of Sahal’s greatest generals and was even invited to come along to Castiana, though he insisted on bringing near a hundred of his own men, believing they were simply riding into a Imperial trap.



I hope it's found acceptable, and let me know if something should require changing. Also, should you come up with something Shjade adding some backstory between Koro and him is always welcome.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

I may be interested

Hiya, Strifey! Long time, no see. ;D

Think I'll say I'm pretty interested as well. Really appreciated the amount of depth and detail you lent to the background and lore of this. If I had any questions I guess they would be as it pertains to differences between the three kingdoms besides the political ones. As in, is there a great cultural or ethnical difference between the Empire and the Grand Duchy, or even Sahal for that matter? Does slavery exist in one of, if not all of the realms? Any other tidbits like that that can add to the differing nature of the 3 realms. Beyond that, my only curiosity is if you envision a overarching plotline taking effect, or if you plan to allow all of the subplots to take their course and see where that takes the thread.

My first inclination was to be a high ranking Warlord in the southern kingdom, possibly a legitimate rival to the High King, or at least rumored to be so (but for the time being acts loyal). Might be inclined to take on a secondary role as well should the need for more holes to be filled arise, just to let that be known. I do so love games of political intrigue :). Anyway, great work so far on this and I'm excited to see where it goes.

Thanks so much! That means a lot to me. And those are all excellent questions. On the issue of cultural differences, the entire continent was once ruled by the Empire and as a result, even barbarous Sahal maintains at least some links to Imperial culture. Any divergences in cultural tastes would have come about as a result of the war. I suppose the best example I can come up with is real-life Western civilisation. While states we define as "Western" share a lot of similar characteristics, social structures and values that are readily identifiable, each country also has some variations unique to themselves. So I guess you could say that the Empire is the United Kingdom, and that the Grand Duchy is America (you know, if the American Revolution was fought because of the inalienable rights of the noblemen) - very similar in terms of shared history and culture, but unique in their own way since their separation. If we really wanted to stretch that analogy beyond breaking point, you could say that Sahal is my fair land of Australia, but really Sahal is probably most indicative for what life is like for the average person living in the war. These are just men and women, former citizens of the Empire and the Grand Duchy, who were cut loose by both governments and ended up falling through the cracks. While the noble class would define them as being culturally "deviant", and might have been correct in their assessment a few hundred years ago, the people of Sahal are really the cultural norm for common people in even the Empire and the Grand Duchy these days - hardy survivors who've learned to adapt in whatever ways they have to in order to survive.

As for ethnic differences, the Empire was a multi-ethnic state when it ruled over the entire continent, and as a result so too is everywhere else. I've made it like this so that someone who wants to play a character belonging to a certain ethnic group isn't pigeonholed into having to join one faction they may not necessarily like or be interested in because they're excluded from another. As for slavery, it's technically illegal in both the Empire and the Grand Duchy but since the war that law is hardly ever enforced. Both sides need access to cheap labour to keep the war going, and the roving hordes of displaced refugees afford them that in abundance. Of course, the stuffy nobles always euphemistically refer to it as something else, like "conscription," but it does exist. Of course, slavery also exists in Sahal, but they're actually honest about that fact.

As for the storyline, it'll mostly follow various subplots and schemes of the players' own creation, but I do have some events such as festivals and tournaments to keep the narrative moving forwards. And as GM I reserve the right to take any subplots that interest me and throw a little fuel on the fire to thrust them into the fore of the storyline. I hope I've answered your questions well enough, but if you feel I didn't answer any of them properly or come up with any new ones, don't hesitate to ask.

Well. Shoot. To be honest I don't know if I should throw my hat in the ring for this for a variety of reasons...but I couldn't not at least write up a character sheet when I knew I had the right look in mind for one right away. So what the heck.

If any of those reasons have to do with the storyline feel free to bring them up, and I'll see if there's anything I can do to smooth those issues out for you. I really like your character, and she's approved.

Oh, and to answer the question you sent me by PM, you're right. It was a typo and a Grand Duke is removed by a "two-thirds" majority vote, not a "three-thirds" majority.

I hope it's found acceptable, and let me know if something should require changing. Also, should you come up with something Shjade adding some backstory between Koro and him is always welcome.

Oh boy, our characters are going to love each other! He's more than acceptable, and approved. While I don't need you to make any changes, the part about the retinue he's bringing with him does remind me of an editorial note that I forgot to bring up earlier. While characters are allowed to bring a handful of servants to attend to their needs - or perhaps more importantly, handle their food - and an even smaller group of bodyguards, the number of people allowed inside the castle has been quite limited to try and strike a balance between safety concerns and too many people with weapons who hate another in the same place. Your 100 men will be allowed to make camp outside the castle walls but only some will be allowed to accompany you inside.

[Shjade]

I hope it's found acceptable, and let me know if something should require changing. Also, should you come up with something Shjade adding some backstory between Koro and him is always welcome.

Considering he thinks women are only good for bedding and baking, I doubt Torrus and Koroga would have much common history aside from the possibility of his coming on to her and her replying he should go die in a fire.

Edit: neat, I guessed right on almost everything for backstory purposes. How convenient. xD

[Odanrav]

@ Marrisa

That does pretty much answer my biggest questions and I thank ya for the acceptance. And I always thought the 100 man party would be a background force camped outside the castle and not really involved. I simply figured a prominent warlord wouldn't go anywhere without a significant number of swords at his back. I might name a random servant or guard from time to time that follows him, but they won't be significant.

@ Shjade

Considering he thinks women are only good for bedding and baking, I doubt Torrus and Koroga would have much common history aside from the possibility of his coming on to her and her replying he should go die in a fire.

If the two of them have met, this is not a possibility, but a certainty =P. He also probably would have offered to wed her, with the purpose of adding her forces to his own, which I would dare to guess was harshly rejected since there's little chance he would have given her leeway to lead any of the men lol.

[Chronoclasm]

Hi Marissa! This is an excellent bit of world building you've done, and I might well be interested in joining the rest of these fine men and women in fleshing out your storyline. I do have a handful of questions, before I decide what I'll be submitting for my character, though:

(1) Abra-cadabra!: Does magic exist? If so, in what manner?

(2) What does this button do?: What are the technological limits of the setting? Have firearms of any sort been invented? Do ships outfit cannons? Or is it prototypical "medieval" technology, with windmills representing the snazziest tech the realms have to offer?

(3) Deus Vult!: What is the setting's cosmological and theological belief system like? Is there one god, one Church; multiple gods and temples for each; is every country different in its beliefs? Are there historical comparisons to be made with concerns to dogma and general practices (whether that comparison be to Christianity, Buddhism, or what have you)?

(4) But-but-but, you're a woman!: What are the gender roles? Is it a patriarchal society? Is sexism alive and well? What about racism? For that matter, what are the predominate ethnic groups, and are any of them "non-human?"

And finally,

(5) I hit you with my axe and now you are dead: How will we be handling confrontations? Will you be making rulings (and if so, what will your criteria be)? Or will you be relying on us to be grown-ups about it and privately determine how our in-character conflict is handled? (Rock, paper, scissors anybody?)

My apologies if any of these were already touched on. I've only skimmed the thread, as I am in the process of heading out. I'll re-read the established lore in better depth tomorrow; promise!

[Shjade]

He also probably would have offered to wed her, with the purpose of adding her forces to his own, which I would dare to guess was harshly rejected since there's little chance he would have given her leeway to lead any of the men lol.

Pretty much, yeah. The idea of a commitment doesn't bother her, but he's definitely not the guy for that role, and I'm sure he'd have enough of a reputation to know that much without needing the firsthand experience. As far as she'd be concerned he's just another Warlord: he does his thing, she does hers.

[Strifesblaze7]

Can I be another warlord?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Sorry for the late replies, everyone. I had internet problems yesterday and I wasn't going to type all of this on my phone.

That does pretty much answer my biggest questions and I thank ya for the acceptance. And I always thought the 100 man party would be a background force camped outside the castle and not really involved. I simply figured a prominent warlord wouldn't go anywhere without a significant number of swords at his back. I might name a random servant or guard from time to time that follows him, but they won't be significant.

I thought as much, but it was something I meant to mention earlier anyway so thanks for reminding me.

Hi Marissa! This is an excellent bit of world building you've done, and I might well be interested in joining the rest of these fine men and women in fleshing out your storyline. I do have a handful of questions, before I decide what I'll be submitting for my character, though:

(1) Abra-cadabra!: Does magic exist? If so, in what manner?

Hocus No-cus!: Thanks heaps, Chrono and I'll try to answer all of your questions as best as I can. Luckily for me, this first one is easy. Magic doesn't exist in this universe. I hope that doesn't turn you off it too much.

(2) What does this button do?: What are the technological limits of the setting? Have firearms of any sort been invented? Do ships outfit cannons? Or is it prototypical "medieval" technology, with windmills representing the snazziest tech the realms have to offer?

Self destruct engaged: Technology straddles the line somewhere between the High Medieval period and the very, very early Italian Renaissance. Things like cannon and primitive, single-shot firearms are in existence, but in limited number and often designated to priority regions or armies.

(3) Deus Vult!: What is the setting's cosmological and theological belief system like? Is there one god, one Church; multiple gods and temples for each; is every country different in its beliefs? Are there historical comparisons to be made with concerns to dogma and general practices (whether that comparison be to Christianity, Buddhism, or what have you)?

Beati Pacifici: I didn't include information on religion because it doesn't have much bearing on the storyline, but it does exist. Religion is monotheistic in nature, and most analogous to European Christianity and the many branches thereof that emerged during the Reformation. The Church is officially neutral in the conflict, and offers aid to the civilians of both nations. However, because the Pontifex resides in the Imperial capital, and Emperors of the past have meddled in the affairs of the Church in ancient times, the Grand Duchy sponsored a schism amongst sympathetic clerics, resulting in a splinter group called the Renunciates. Essentially, the mainstream Church is similar to Catholicism, with the Pontifex serving as the head of the church in its entirety. The Renunciates are more decentralised, rejecting an absolute authority figure, and placing a greater emphasis on the role of the Church at the local community level, along with greater tolerance of different interpretations of their bible.

(4) But-but-but, you're a woman!: What are the gender roles? Is it a patriarchal society? Is sexism alive and well? What about racism? For that matter, what are the predominate ethnic groups, and are any of them "non-human?"

Do my thighs perplex you so?: Imperial society was originally patriarchal in nature, but the war rapidly changed that. As male nobles often led their armies into battle, it often became common for the entire male side of a noble house to be wiped out. Essentially this situation resulted in noble families having to accept the legitimate claims of their female members to their lands, or run the risk of their entire house and its assets being absorbed by another house that married the powerless female survivors. Today it's not at all uncommon for women to rule fiefdoms or command the military forces assigned to their holdings, but that said, there is a small minority who would rather a return to the old ways. Culture is mentioned in a previous post, and the empire is a multi-ethnic state, but there are no non-humans.

And finally,

(5) I hit you with my axe and now you are dead: How will we be handling confrontations? Will you be making rulings (and if so, what will your criteria be)? Or will you be relying on us to be grown-ups about it and privately determine how our in-character conflict is handled? (Rock, paper, scissors anybody?)

My apologies if any of these were already touched on. I've only skimmed the thread, as I am in the process of heading out. I'll re-read the established lore in better depth tomorrow; promise!

Nu uh, I'm invincible!: At present I'll be trusting people to work out conflicts amongst themselves, and determine an outcome that they can both agree on via PM or in the OOC. In the event that this proves impossible, or creates more problems than it solves, then I'll have to step in on a case by case basis but how I'll determine a solution depends on what the problem happens to be at the time.

Can I be another warlord?

You can, indeed. Sahal is turning out to be a lot more popular than I expected.

[Strifesblaze7]

Name: Axon Leeros
Title: Warlord
Faction: Sahal
Age: 25
Sexual Orientation: Straight

Goal: To have his own, untouched and undisturbed piece of land with a beautiful and powerful wife.

Personality: He is driven to get what he wants and respectful of anyone that he deems worthy of it. He is confident, stubborn, fiery and willing to fight with all that he has for his people.

Appearance: His hair is black and goes to his chin, his eyes are ocean blue. This is his armor.

Biography: Axon is a young warlord, too young to be respected in the eyes of some of his followers but he has earned his place. His father was killed in a fight, a small skirmish that happened on their lands and Axon was challenged by an older member of the tribe for power and leadership. He accepted the challenge and defeated the man, therefore earning the right to lead his people until he saw fit to leave them or another challenger defeats him. He is trying to secure the borders of his land, trying to give his people a good home so that they don't have to worry about losing it.

As such, he has taken a rather defensive stance to protect his land, he is not a coward but he doesn't wish to make a foolish mistake and lose his lands. He plans to do all that he can to keep his men fighting on their lands to keep them safest, he feels that they know their lands better than anyone and should be able to repel any attackers that may come at them.

[Chronoclasm]

Thank you for your erudite responses, Marissa. You're as intelligent as you are adorable, and you have all the makings of a medievalist. That being said, it'll be a day or two before I finish my character. I'll submit something by the weekend.

I'll try to come up with a concept that balances out our mighty warlords (and I'll almost definitely side with the Grand Duchy).

[Countdown0]

So, being very interested in this, I have a couple of questions.

First, would I be allowed to make a character who is an officer in the Empire's military who is present at the peace conference to protect Imperial politicians present?

Second, given the response to the technology available, would it be okay if my character we renowned (and possibly feared) for his skill with the single-shot firearms that exist in the world? I have this idea of him being a naval officer who particularly enjoys the smell of the black powder burning and the sound of cannons exploding, and who is regarded in the Empire as a military prodigy. He'd be very off putting to most people at the peace conference, and very ready to shoot somebody in the face, but the Empire would consider him something of a 'necessary evil' to keep their diplomats feeling safe and secure.

[Belisuavious]

Name: Conan de Rennes
Title: Duke of Bretagne
Faction:Grand Duchy at the moment, liable to change
Age: 26
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual

Goal: Conan wants the best for his Duchy, which like the Duchy of Castiana, has the misfortune of being caught between the two great powers, though his is farther north and isn't as much of a battle ground for the two forces. That doesn't mean that his lands have escaped the ravages of war, and the snarling wolfshead banners have marched to war into the Imperial lands more than once, and back into the lands of the Grand Duchy a couple of times as well, depending on which power was backing the current Duke.

Currently, what would be best for the Duchy of Bretagne is to see the Duchy of Castiana neutralized as much as possible, since the two Duchies share a border and due to their opposing allegiances, have skirmished and raided through each others lands. There has always been a rivalry between the House of St. Clair and House de Rennes, especially while the southern St. Clair's profited from their position, while the people of Bretagne was far less prosperous. The war brought these problems to a head, and gave an outlet for these frustrations.

Additionally, Conan is in favour of ending the war as swiftly as possible. His lands are bleeding from the constant fighting, and as a well respected warrior, he won't suffer any loss of face by declaring that it is finally time to end this bitter conflict.

Personality: Conan is above all else, an honest man. That doesn't mean he is stupid, he knows better than to expect honesty in return. He is slow to anger, but once roused he will be a dangerous enemy. The one exception, when he loses his patience and is much quicker to anger, is when dealings with the house St. Clair come up. His family, with the odd exception of an outlier relative who the Empire placed on the Ducal seat, has never been a friend to the St. Clair's and being brought up in that environment, as well as the constant border fighting, has embittered Conan towards his southern neighbor.

Appearance: Conan stands at 6 feet tall, and is well muscled as benefits his role as a warrior and general. He does his best to stay clean shaven, and during this diplomatic meeting he has kept himself impeccably well groomed.

Biography: Brought up in the newly restored House de Rennes, which had only just gotten its home back from an Imperial backed pretender a generation before, Conan has been extremely active in protecting his lands against Imperial encroachment. This went double after his father died besieging Castiana. To that end, he bought, stole and borrowed as many horses as he could, turning his small personal forces into an all-mounted force, to quickly reach any part of his land that was being threatened. More recently, in the past three years or so, this has led them south to fight the forces of the restored St. Clair family. Conan, while a brave and skilled warrior and leader of men, has been able to do little more than skirmish and raid the forces and lands of his enemies.

With the levies being fewer and fewer with every call up, and less and less money flowing into the treasury, Conan knows that he cannot keep fighting forever, and has begun trying to talk other dukes around to his point of view. He is less than thrilled about the location of the peace talks, but must make do with what he has.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Strife and Jecter, you're both approved. And I can see our characters getting along swimmingly already, Jecter.

Thank you for your erudite responses, Marissa. You're as intelligent as you are adorable, and you have all the makings of a medievalist. That being said, it'll be a day or two before I finish my character. I'll submit something by the weekend.

I'll try to come up with a concept that balances out our mighty warlords (and I'll almost definitely side with the Grand Duchy).

Careful now, flattery will get you nowhere. That's a lie. I'm a sucker for flattery and you just earned yourself bonus points. I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

So, being very interested in this, I have a couple of questions.

First, would I be allowed to make a character who is an officer in the Empire's military who is present at the peace conference to protect Imperial politicians present?

Second, given the response to the technology available, would it be okay if my character we renowned (and possibly feared) for his skill with the single-shot firearms that exist in the world? I have this idea of him being a naval officer who particularly enjoys the smell of the black powder burning and the sound of cannons exploding, and who is regarded in the Empire as a military prodigy. He'd be very off putting to most people at the peace conference, and very ready to shoot somebody in the face, but the Empire would consider him something of a 'necessary evil' to keep their diplomats feeling safe and secure.

You can certainly play a military officer assigned to protect Imperial diplomats, since most characters would probably have some kind of NPC bodyguard with them anyway and the input of military experts would be considered valuable by the assembled diplomats.

As for the second point, characters are allowed to bear arms for self defence since it would be virtually impossible to prevent them from acquiring some and most would feel uncomfortable being unarmed so close to the enemy. You do have to keep in mind, however, that the Emperor has agreed to hand over anyone who kills a foreign dignitary for execution and that the Duchess has ensured that her guards outnumber both factions to ensure that major violence doesn't break out.

[Strifesblaze7]

I call her cute and she argues. O_O

[Shjade]

You do have to keep in mind, however, that the Emperor has agreed to hand over anyone who kills a foreign dignitary for execution and that the Duchess has ensured that her guards outnumber both factions to ensure that major violence doesn't break out.

Which, to be honest, gives me cause to wonder if the Empire would risk someone they consider necessary, fearsome and a military prodigy by sending him to a place where they know his lust for gunpowder murder might get him executed.

I mean, if the guy has the reputation you say he does, Countdown, it seems pretty likely everyone at the meeting would know who and what he is. Wouldn't it be worth it to pretty much anyone with anti-Imperial proclivities to bait him into attacking them, even if it meant their own death, if it would immediately get rid of one of the Empire's military darlings? It'd be baiting the enemy queen with one of your knights: you'll make that trade almost every time with hardly a second thought.

It seems like a strategic blunder to let a guy like this anywhere near such a meeting, much less in the role of chaperone to make him feel even more defensive and ready to shoot someone. If anything he would be the one in need of a babysitter to make sure he doesn't do something suicidal.

Just thinking out loud, mind you.

[Wajin]

Name:Brahanan "Brahn" Vaelen

Formal Title: Duke of Ravthorn

Informal Title: The bloodied Duke

Faction: Grand Duchy of Nobles

Age: 21

Sexual Orientation: Bisexual with a preference for younger people of both genders

Goal:

Brahn's sole reason for even coming is to show of his, his family and his vassal's wealth. Ravthorn is famous in the Grand Duchy for producing only the finest wood and wine. He cares little for the drama of others and sees the potential of marriage as just a bonus. Since the start of the war, the income from his lands' wine production has decreased immensely, the use of his wood for weapons has meant a great added revenue as he secretly sold wood to both sides to maximize profits.

His family has always cared little for what side they were on as long as they were left to their own devices. Brahn has promised each of his vassals a great reward if they were to marry into influential families.


Personality:
Brahn is greedy in every sense of the word, if there is a chance he can get richer, he will do anything to get there. Outwardly he seems to treasure his family immensely, but it is not so, he loathes the members of his family, but the prestige of the name comes before all else. He is a cold, calculating and cynical man when one gets to know him. He will do anything to further his own position and has demonstrated this in the past.

Though the rare few he love he loves with a passion that is seldom seen, he treasures the company of his friends and loved ones immensely, and will only ever relax when he is in the company of those he trusts. He is in no way religious and has on many occasions made it known that he is a deist, believing in a creating force, but not that this force influences the world any more.

Brahn appreciates physical strength, his family motto being "Strength in body, strength of mind" as such he is greatly interested in the parties coming from Sahal and hopes to find allies within the warlords, not for the sake of the Grand Duchy, but for the sake of himself and his lands.

In what spare time he has Brahn trains rigorously, both in swordplay and less noble forms of combat. Brahn likes to challenge his might by solving puzzles and inventing things. He often upgrades the siege equipment of his armies when he finds a flaw in current designs. He studied languages when he was young, along with mathematics and history. As the last heir in line, he was always led to do what he wanted, taking up weird interests like alchemy and study of animal anatomy.

Appearance: Brahn is a handsome young man with light brown hair, a body to match even the most beautiful of ancient statues. He is ambidextrous and it shows as he is often spotted writing with both hands, a trick he learned from his deceased mother. He usually wears flamboyant clothes of foreign appearance, though he can also be spotted wearing the family armour after practices. He always carries his family blade at his hip in a scabbard of ivory

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Biography:
Brahn was the youngest of three brothers, his two older brothers being 3 and 6 years older than him. The youngest of his older brothers, Tristan, was betrothed to a noblewoman in the Empire, a business partner of the Vaelen family, though on his way to a meeting with his betrothed's family, his retinue and Vassals were all slain by bandits. At this time Brahn was 15, but still ventured with the men sent out to punish the bandits. When the men returned to the castle only Brahn and his oldest brother Caileb was still unscathed, Brahn's sword stained with blood while Caileb was as clean as when he had left. This unwillingness to kill the killers of their brother convinced Brahn that Caileb was unfit to be Duke.

When Brahn turned 17 he challenged his brother, now Duke due to the death of their elderly father, to an ancient ceremonial duel the Vaelen family used to resolve internal power struggles. This ceremonial duel is known as the Dance of Blades, the two duellists fight with dulled blades but carry ritual knives. The duel consists of 4 periods during each period the duellists must hit the other with his dull blade, during the following intermission the one who received the most blows must cut himself upon the location of each blow. Brahn had for the first time in all of Vaelen family history not been hit even once and had hit his brother 17 times on different spots on his neck. The gathered nobles and family watched in horror as Brahn forced his brother to nearly decapitate himself, only for Brahn to then take the formerly white, now blood red, cape of the Dukes from his brother putting it on his shoulders, proclaiming himself the new Duke. This event earned him his informal title The bloodied duke

Since that day Brahn has never been challenged to any duels using swords, he was banned from competing in other nobles' contests. He didn't mind, now that he was Duke he spend his time managing the fortune of his family, expanding their trade connections and mercantile alliances. Brahn has chosen so far not to be betrothed to anyone as he doesn't see himself as a father in the near future.

Brahn's ancestors weren't known to travel down to the border regions to defend the lands themselves, preferring to let the vassals in the southern part of Ravthorn. They liked to keep along the coast and enjoy the finer life. Brahn disdained this behavior when he was young, first from his father, and then from his brother. 3 months after taking the title from his brother he ventured with the bravest of his men to the borders and beyond after a band of slavers from Sahal had kidnapped his goddaughter and his best friends wife. They caught up with the slavers, but instead of simply killing them, Brahn brought them back to his lands to start working on a series of wooden towers, placed along the borders of his lands. When they finished, Brahn had soldiers inpale the slavers alive on the huge wooden spikes protruding from the tower. Brahn founded a new order of knights in Ravthorn, the order of the bloodied stake. These knights were tasked with keeping invaders from Sahal from entering his lands, and those that did got the same fat as the slavers. Once every year Brahn would participate in what the knights called "the Hunts" Now the southern borders of Ravthorn intimidates any would be invaders by portraying the impaled skeletons and rotten corpses of invaders on these massive towers.

Brahn journeyed to the meeting with only 4 of his greatest vassals, but with a host of servants carrying gifts to all the gathered lords to show his faked good intent.

[Violetstiele]

Character Sheet
No pic yet.

Name: Gideon Rochelle
Title: Duke of Rochelle
Faction: Selician Empire
Age: Old (ill)
Sexual Orientation: hetero

Goal:
Seeking a husband for his young daughter and a ruler for his lands before his death.


Personality: Strong (mentally) and decisive. Though forced by illness to be in a chair with wheels, he still rules his rich lands as if by will alone.

Appearance:
He wears court appropriate attire at all times, though his weak legs are kept covered by a blanket. His white hair is cropped short as is his neatly trimmed beard. From his face, his eyes stare out and seem to miss nothing.

Biography:
Once considered one of the greatest military minds in the land, the old man retired to his imperial estates as his sickness grew too hard to hide. His only wife died in childbirth, leaving him a daughter. She is his only living family. It's been known that he's shopping about for a husband for her, someone strong enough to be the Duke Rochelle needs after he's gone, but until he appeared at the peace conference, no one had realized how sick the old man really was.


Character Sheet



Name: Megan Rochelle
Title: Lady of Rochelle
Faction: Selician Empire
Age: 18
Sexual Orientation: hetero (she thinks) lol

Goal:
Megan wants nothing more than to please her father. She wishes she could ease his burdens and is frustrated that he will not believe a noble woman can do more than bear children for her realm. While she has no skills in any military sense, she has watched his court for years and feels confident she could manage that if nothing else.

Personality: Little is known about her outside of Rochelle, however she is sweet on the surface and strong willed beneath it.

Appearance:
Megan is a beautiful girl with long wavy red hair and big blue eyes. She is busty, but slim hipped, with a long delicate neck usually bearing some fine jewel her father has gifted her with. 

Biography:
Raised by servants and a distant relative who passed away two years ago, Lady Megan has been trained in all the skills an imperial noblewoman is meant to have. She has been constantly chaperoned since coming of age, her virtue and reputation being of great concern to her father.

(Apologies for the giant pic. I'm having technical difficulties over here)

[Strifesblaze7]

Use that code. XD

[Violetstiele]

Use that code. XD

Thank you! :D my hero!

[Strifesblaze7]

glad you like it. XD

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Dane and Violet are both approved. Welcome aboard. As a note to any prospective members, we currently need more female characters and the royal families of all factions are still completely open to anyone who wants them.

I call her cute and she argues. O_O

He called me erudite :P

[Strifesblaze7]

I called you frigging beautiful....

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Rolls her eyes playfully before standing up on her tippy toes to plant a kiss on Strife's cheek. Thank you, Strife. ;D

[Strifesblaze7]

Oh, thank you dear. XD You're welcome. -kisses her cheek softly as well-

[Countdown0]

Name: Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III

Title: Imperial Captain, Future Earl of Rumacet

Faction: The Empire

Age: 25

Sexual Orientation: Straight

Goal: First, to preserve and strengthen the good name of his family within the Empire. Second, to protect and defend the Imperial Dignitaries.

Personality: Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn, the Third of his name, is a hard man. His family has served in the Imperial Military for over a dozen generations, and he grew up surrounded by that tradition, and the expectations that came with it.

He carries himself with pride in his family, and an air of dignity, seemingly always calm, and never caught off guard. It is difficult to know if this is because he simply doesn't trust anyone or anything, or if he simply knows what is going to happen ahead of time.

Disciplined and controlled, he is very confident in himself and his abilities, though at the same time, he is always looking to exceed expectations and find new ways to succeed.

His presence at a Peace Conference may be considered questionable, considering that he is a military man, and views most politicians and nobles to be naive and the exiles from Sahal to be about akin to wild animals hat are ridden with diseases that cause mental instability. That said, he is far to proud of his family heritage to be the responsible party if the Peace Conference turns violent.

He scoffs at the notion of fair play or honor, having spent a great deal of his military service to this point in battles that were nothing short of horrific and bloody massacres. Aeren has been challenged to a duel only twice in his life. Both times, he simply shot the offending party on the spot, not bothering to offer an answer. When asked about it though, he did offer an explanation: "If a man challenges me to a duel, he clearly wants to kill me. I mean to return the sentiment to any who offer it." Some have whispered the idea that he may be a coward, though no one has ever said so to his face... at least, no one who spoke of it again.

He doesn't particularly care for the notion of a peace conference, believing that the people from Sahal will not honor any agreements in the long term. While in his personal life, Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III is a levelheaded and fair man, in battle, he is efficient, ruthless, and cold.

"I don't need to fight with honor. I have skill. Don't expect me to even the odds for you if you can't keep up." - Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III, spoken to the Sahali Warlord "Ironheart", during parley before battle. The Warlord suggested that the use of pistols and cannons was not a honorable way to fight. He died that day when Aeren shot him through the left eye.

Appearance: About six feet tall, with dark blue eyes and fair-but-tanned skin. He is long limbed and in good shape, with lots of lean muscle. His hair is neat, dark brown in color, and always kept in a way that prevents it from falling in his face.

Biography: Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthron the Third is, as every Redthorn male for almost twenty generations past, a loyal soldier in the Imperial Military. The Redthorn family is technically nobility, though they were not given titles and land by marrying the rich and powerful. It began with Sidaig Redthorn, the first of his family to serve in the Imperial military. Since then, all Redthorn men have served, each one climbing the ranks and earning respect, fame, and in the cases of the Empire's enemies, fear. After a handful of generations, it could not be denied that the Redthorn contribution to the Empire was above and beyond what could be considered 'common'. They were given noble titles.

That said, Redthorn men prefer to be referred to by their military title than noble titles. Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III is no expection, insisting that he be called Captain, even if he will, upon his father's passing, be an 'Earl'. He has always preferred action to a stationary existence, and he found it in at sea.

Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III is Captain of the Imperial Vessel “Paramount”, one of the first ships in the Empire's Grand Navy to be fitted with cannons. As Captain, he has found that he loves the sound of the ships guns when they fire, and the smell of the black powder when a flame is struck to it. Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III even trained with steadfast and unyielding dedication to master the use of the 'pistol', the most modern weapon that a single man can carry into battle. For most, it is a complex contraption, but in his hands, it is more lethal than any sword or bow, and he has developed a fearsome reputation among the enemies of the Empire as 'the man who shoots fire from his hands'. He is very skilled as a marksman, and can shoot accurately with either hand.

He grew up in Rumacet, the land that, about a dozen generations ago, was gifted, along with the title of 'Earl', to the Redthorn family as a reward for their beyond impressive service to the empire. One day he will be Earl of Rumacet, though he prefers not to think about it.

Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III is widely considered a military prodigy by other members of the Imperial Military. Skill in both battle and strategy are part of the Redthorn bloodline, but his is leaps and bounds beyond even his father, who is still, in times of war, a General in the Imperial Military. While he is a naval Captain now, Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III cut his teeth on the battlefield. He is neither the largest or strongest man to swing a sword, but he has often been seen to simply out fight and out think his enemies.

"War is in my blood. Sailing is just the most fun way to wage it."

His Ship: Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III is captain of the Imperial Vessel 'Paramount'. Paramount is not designed for trading, nor cargo, but for battle, and oceanic supremacy. Cannons line the port and starboard sides, with the front and back equipped with a lighter load of guns to aid in chasing or retreating. The powder loads and kept deep within the core of the ship to protect them from being struck. Some ships are made for exploration, but Paramount was specially designed and built to take advantage of the new technology of cannons to create a ship that could protect the Empire's waters from any enemy, and that could, by itself, force a city to surrender if subjected to bombardment. It has worked very well. Aeren is the only man every to command the Paramount, so the name of the ship is synonymous with his presence. Pirates, and enemies of the Empire alike, beware. You'll find no swifter way to the bottom of the sea than by facing Captain Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III in naval conflict.

"Paramount isn't built for ceremony. She's built to seek and destroy." - Aeren before he took the ship out of dock before a ceremonial send off, chasing pirates that had bombarded the port only moments before, injuring several members of the Imperial Court in attendance. The pirate vessel was sunk with no survivors.

Clothes and Equipment: A very dark red overcoat with decorations befitting the rank of a naval captain, and a stark white shirt underneath. Black trousers and a supple leather belt. Thick leather boots that rise to just below the knee, buckles made of steel.

Aeren Horacius Arendarr Redthorn III carries fours pistols on his person. While each one can only be fired once before needing to be reloaded, they have been specially crafted so that they are perfectly fitted to his hands, with the sights modeled to his liking. Two are worn on each hip. He also carries plenty of extra bullets and powder.

A sabre that he took from a pirate captain, sheathed on his left hip. A heavier, curved bladed sword is a strange sight, but Aeren Horacius Arendall Redthorn III was stubborn in his efforts to master the blade, and he did so. When his pistols are not an option, he is more than capable of using the blade.

He also carries a stiletto dagger that hangs from his right hip. It is intended as his last choice of weapon, but serves quite well if someone needs to be disposed of discretely.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Chrono and Countdown, you're both approved. And Chrono, I expect our characters will find they share a lot of common ground.

Just a general reminder to any prospective players that we need additional female characters, and all slots in the royal family of each faction are currently open to whoever wants them.

[Chronoclasm]

Great! It should be fun. I'll look forward to the game's start.

We just need to woo some more ladies, I suppose. Come on, girls, lots of eligible bachelors in this game? Some of them like killing things!

[CurvyKitten]

I'm some what interested, just not sure about which idea I want to expand upon in my head lol. I have a noble idea as well as an independents idea.

[Countdown0]

Haha, I like your style Chrono, putting my character's name first on the list. He definitely wont shoot your guy :D

[Chronoclasm]

^ All a part of my plan. All a part of my plan . . .  :P

[CurvyKitten]

Well I have an idea for a fallen noble, as I read during the war long lines of Royalty were wiped out. The one I had in mind is the only survivor of her family. Her lands are held by the Imperial as theirs but she could by law still hold claim...granted that would mean she would have the ability to hold onto it. Perhaps the Imperial ( or whom ever) killed off her family due to them not playing along that they were supposed to or something like that. But she is actually thought as dead and is actually fled and spent the rest of her life growing up in The Kingdom of Sahal.

The second is a woman I had in mind is a Royal woman that is a wild child at heart. She knows her role but hates the idea of marrying someone she was forced to. She plays the proper woman but when she thinks no one is looking she is a bit more ambitious and untamed. Speaks her mind and sometimes not at the best of times either :P Who knows where she will end up heading or doing...duty or passion what will come first?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

The names are in alphabetical order Countdown XD

Hey Kitten. Exiled nobles are quite common, particularly on the border fiefdoms. Generally, if a House manages to survive the conquest of their lands, they typically flee in exile to the capital of their respective nation and serve in the court there until such a time as they manage to muster up the support to reclaim their holdings. As such, especially in heavily contested territories, it's not uncommon for both an Imperial-loyal and Grand Duchy-loyal noble to stake claim to those lands, with one of them in exile. Of course, fleeing in exile into Sahal is also an option.

As for your second idea, it sounds like you have a Princess of sorts in mind. Luckily, the royal family is completely open so you can be whatever faction you want there as well.

[Countdown0]

^ All a part of my plan. All a part of my plan . . .  :P

I look forward to seeing it unfold :P

Meantime, I have so additions to make to my CS regarding the ship and such.

The names are in alphabetical order Countdown XD

Way to kill my superiority complex >.<

[CurvyKitten]

Hey Kitten. Exiled nobles are quite common, particularly on the border fiefdoms. Generally, if a House manages to survive the conquest of their lands, they typically flee in exile to the capital of their respective nation and serve in the court there until such a time as they manage to muster up the support to reclaim their holdings. As such, especially in heavily contested territories, it's not uncommon for both an Imperial-loyal and Grand Duchy-loyal noble to stake claim to those lands, with one of them in exile. Of course, fleeing in exile into Sahal is also an option.

Edit: I'd be more then willing to say one of the created families were the ones that went against her family if anyone was interested.

Well my idea was maybe it was treason in the royal families or something. And as she was the only one left as a child she had no way of fighting or staking her claim. And was taken to Sahal so that she would not be hunted. Maybe her family actually held a great deal of land or held something important to the kingdoms? I was thinking her goal could be to take back her families land(and fortunes) and kill the person or family behind her families death. Hopefully I'm making sense lol

As for your second idea, it sounds like you have a Princess of sorts in mind. Luckily, the royal family is completely open so you can be whatever faction you want there as well.

Yup that would be what I had in mind. :) Not sure which faction I would want her on honestly hehe

[Ember Star]

Are princesses allowed? Or just duchess and such?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

We're currently in need of princesses, so feel free to make a princess character. The entire royal family of each faction is open, so you could also be an Empress, Grand Duchess or High Queen if any of those tickle your fancy as well.  :-)

[RedEve]

Is there a difference in technological level between the three factions? I would imagine that the bandits aren't as refined in both weaponry and tactics as the two other factions.

And to add to that, are you opposed to some fantasy elements?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

The Empire and the Grand Duchy are roughly on even terms when it comes to technological advancement, as they possess their own manufacturing bases. They sort of straddle the line between the High Medieval and Early Italian Renaissance eras. As you rightly point out, the Kingdom of Sahal is much more behind them in terms of technological advancement. They manufacture little beyond the most basic products and the majority of what they possess comes from what they're able to capture or plunder from others.

[RedEve]

Marisa, in terms of my question about Fantasy, it really boils down to this: are we to see this universe as a close fascilime of Earth, just an alternate reality?

Or can it be something like the GoT universe, which has a few other races of humans as well as some mythical animals (Dragons, direwolfs, ...).

To give an example, where the Empire and the Grand Duchy use horses, could the Kingdom of Sahal ride some other animal?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Whoops, sorry! I didn't see your edit. This universe is essentially a facsimile of Earth and humans are the only race. That said, I hadn't paid much thought to the inclusion of mythological animals since they don't really have much bearing the storyline. I suppose if there was some kind of fantasy element in particular that you wanted to include I'd have to hear it first before I made a decision.

[RedEve]

It's not really necessary for me.

I guess it's a bit dependent on how much (or how little) you want to make the Sahalites look savage and barbarian when compared to the two other peoples.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

What did you have in mind?

[RedEve]

Well, where you have the Empire and the Grand Duchy at roughly late medieval stage culturally and militarily, I would suggest that the Kingdom of Sahal is more like the Barbarians in the Conan universe?




Basically far less refined in both attire and weaponry.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Ah, now I see what you mean. Essentially yes, the majority of Sahali would look like this although it depends on the warlord who rules over them. For example, a handful of areas have had warlords that have made sure to build up some kind of industry while warlord satrapies closer to the border could steal equipment from their northern neighbours. But for the most part, this would be the look.

[RedEve]

Let me know if this fits in at all with what you had in mind, Marissa.



Name: Xhadea Alahn
Title: Warlord
Faction: Kingdom of Sahal
Age: 26
Sexual Orientation: Straight

Goal: Making sure to stake her claim in the conference. She is there as much out of mistrust of her own countrymen as she is there to study the “real” enemy.

Personality: She is a cold and determined woman. It is not a choice, as only a ruthless and pragmatic person could rise to lead the band of cutthroats, plunderers and rapists she commands. As a woman, she almost has to be even more unforgiving to keep her men in check and earn their respect (or at the very least their fear). If she ever indulged in feelings like love, remorse, compassion, … those have become distant memories after over two decades of hardship in Sahal. Self-preservation and gaining power are the two driving forces in her life.

Appearance: Xhadea stands at 5’10 and has wiry, long muscles. She has red hair and green eyes. Her skin caries the signs of many battles in the form of countless scars. Had she grown up in a noble family to the North, she might have been considered beautiful, but her appearance and manner is far too brutish for anyone to mistake for such in her current appearance.

Biography: Life is hard in the deep South. Only the strong survive, and only the very strong mange to both survive and thrive. Xhadea was orphaned by the age of ten. She was adopted into a marauding band of barbarians who roamed the border area between the Empire and the Kingdom of Sahal. Whilst growing up, she took part in a countless number of skirmishes and battles. In Sahal, combat is learned in the bear pit of battle.  Greenhorns have a short life expectancy, but those that survive come out with leather skin and an ice-cold, steely resolve.

By the time Xhadea was 18, she already rivaled any member of her merry band of murderers in single combat. By the time she was 20, she had a seat at their Lord’s table. When their leader died in combat three years later, she was amongst the three pretenders to assume command. Succession was decided in the Sahalian way, and thus her two rivals lay beheaded soon afterwards. She has lead her company with an iron fist ever since. Known in both Sahal and the Empire as the Red Woman (for her hair), she and her men are discussed in hushed tones as an especially cruel and ruthless outfit, even by Sahalian standards.

Xhadea’s army is rather small compared to that of her peers. Some Warlords can boast forces in the many thousands. Her numbers are hardly ever over two hundred strong, but they are kept hungry and sharp by nearly constant action.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Your character is approved. Nice to have you aboard :-)

[RedEve]

A general question, I assume that most of the families will be bringing a guard to the conference, but I also assume that they won't allow a few dozen entire armies to descend upon the city, so what kind of a force would they be allowed to bring?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

They're allowed to bring a small retinue of bodyguards inside the castle with them, along with a handful of personal servants to handle their food, etc. Just to throw out some arbitrary numbers, I'd say up to five guards and a dozen servants per noble although I'm willing to leave that number open to haggling before the game begins.

[RedEve]

Xhadea won't be bringing any servants.  ;D

I do like the idea of five of her men acting like the proverbial bulls in the china shop as they mingle with the attending gentry. :D

[Wajin]

I have of some more details for the dear Brahn, should I just edit then in or do you want me to PM them to you?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

I can barely imagine some nobles deigning to speak with the warlords, let alone their bodyguards XD

Feel free to just edit them in, Dane.

[Wajin]

And 'tis done :D

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Thanks Dane. I just looked it over and everything seems to be in order. I can't wait to get started ;D

[Wajin]

I actually considered adding archery to his hobbies but decided to just add "Less noble forms of combat" :D So it can archery and more ;)

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

All good skills for a man banned from noble duels to have XD

[Wajin]

Indeed. Any news on when you expect we can start? when the royal families have been filled...?

[RedEve]

Marissa, with the way you have described life in the South, I would assume that most of the Warlords would see each other as rivals and at best they would honor some loosely held truce?
Or did you have another opinion of the internal power structure?

[CurvyKitten]

I'm working on both my idea's as we speak. :) I put a lot of work in my CS but I will try and get them up as soon as possible.

[CurvyKitten]

Ok here is what I have thus far let me know if I should edit, and if anyone sees any links they would like to make please feel free to pm me. Also I was thinking maybe Alexandria/Runa could become part of one of the already established warlords armies?


Character Sheet



Name:Elizabetha Cathleen Torrinpietra
Title: Princess
Faction: Selician Empire
Age: 19
Sexual Orientation: Straight

Goal: Her goal like any other is to lead her country towards peace....at least that is what she says. She plays the part of a loyal and dutiful Princess. But in her heart what she wants more is the freedom that she has forever been denied. A secret wish to be able to chose her own fate, to marry who she chooses, to run free within the kingdom. To free herself from leash that tightens around her neck every day.

Personality: To the world around her she is a well manner, exceedingly educated and poised young woman. She has the air of royalty around her as did her mother, and is the jewel of her country and in her fathers eyes. She holds her head high and tries to make her father proud. But within her heart she is anything but a tamed Princess. She has found a way to make sure her voice is heard, at least when it comes to leading her people. But most of all when she believes the eyes of the kingdom are else where she is who she has always wanted to be. And doing things that drives her father up the walls, running off to explore the woods or towns around them. Taking on learning skills such as archery and swordsmanship.  And for ever proving she is not nearly as tamed as she seems to be.

Appearance:Picture 2/Picture 3/Picture 4/Picture 5/Picture 6
Elizabetha has a well tone fare skinned frame, her vibrant red hair a brilliant contrast to the pale white of her untouched skin. Long legs with lush thighs give way to fertile hips. Her soft curves leaving no mistaking her for a wonderfully feminine curves. Her breasts almost a full C, nothing more then a perfect handful. It is clear she has good breeding and a strong bloodline, the beauty of the woman before her only grows greater over the generations.

Biography:
Elizabetha Cathleen Torrinpietra was born to be a princess; her grand bloodline was filled with leaders. And even as a young child she was expected to honor that blood line to the best of her abilities. Which were expected...no demanded to be the best. Even before she could walk or talk she was shown off as if she were some prize. And as soon as she was able the lessons began.

Languages, art, history, politics, diplomacy...and countless other lessons were all pushed upon her. She was expected to not only do her best but to be the best. And failures were harshly punished and corrected, though her father was careful to punish her in ways that would not mark her body. Using what she cared about most against her. But her parents always insisted it was for her own good, that she would one day have to rise to the occasion. Sadly as she found out later that meant that she would only be rising to a political marriage.

All those lessons all that time and it would all go to marrying her off. It was after an argument with her father that things started to change within her. She had always been a willful child, but her need for freedom grew tenfold over the next few years. She would sneak out and explore the woods, or towns around their kingdom. Actually getting lost a few times, but as always her father would send his greatest guards and they would bring her back. She took to learning archery and even picking up a sword one day. It was against her father’s orders, but it was clear during her free time she would chose to do or learn whatever she wanted to.

Years passed and Elizabetha grew into a brilliant and vibrant young woman. She played the part of dutiful princess, but those that knew her could always see the yearning for more within her eyes. What will happen? What will she chose...duty or passion? Only time will tell which part of the Princess will win out. Hopefully whatever happens her country and her heart will find a way to make both wishes come true.



Character Sheet

 

Name: Alexandria Elena D'navechee Now goes by Runa
Title: Duchess of
Faction: Was the Grand Duchy but fled to the Kingdom of Sahal
Age: 22
Sexual Orientation: Bi

Goal: To take back her land and country and to kill all those responsible for her families deaths. Not a simple task no, but her hatred for those that took everything from her still burns. And soon she hopes it will burn her enemies to ash.

Personality: Runa does not share much about her past, so she always seems to remain a mystery. There is a sensuality that surrounds her and flows into everything she does. From the tasting of fruit to the way she embraces her lovers. Runa is one that intimately aware of what her body can do. She seems as fragile as a flower, but despite her delicate appearance those that know what to look for can see the familiar look of a lioness silently stalking her pray. And to those that cannot see, simply see an exotic vibrant young female. That has more than likely tempt their dreams when they leave one of her performances.

Appearance: Picture 2/Picture 3/ Picture 4/Picture 5/Picture 6
Her stark white hair that flows down to graze the top of her butt. Her body is nearly perfectly untouched except the scar that remains over her heart. It appears that she was stabbed through the heart, yet the seemingly delicate flower survived the blow. Beyond the her pale skin and white hair she has some amazingly and striking crystal blue eyes. 

Biography:
Alexandria Elena D'navechee was born to her mother and father, their only girl after three sons. Her father a Duke of the portion of the snowy lands of the north. His lands were fast and he was a wildly respected man. His force of will known throughout the surrounding lands.  Alexandria was born to them with hair as white as snow and skin nearly as fair. Though her eyes an astonishing crystal blue, even then the young girl drew the attention of others. Her father sure she was destine for greatness.

Oh course lessons were to fallow, as any young maiden with title she was taught by the best. Or at least those that her father deemed the best. But due to her seemingly delicate form she was also shown the ways of the healer. At the time her heart was light and she wanted to heal the people the war so harshly tossed aside. And for the most part she grew up happy, becoming the light or beacon of hope within a darker world. Her father called her his little treasure, and her brothers despite their teasing protected her and cared for her dearly. Her mother on the other hand was always put off by the child, the small girl surpassing even her beauty and taking what seemed her well-earned attention. It was this jealousy that would soon tare her family apart.

When she was 16 tragedies struck as war was at their doorsteps, Ryath a man that her father felt was his brother had been sleeping with his wife, and now sought to take his kingdom from him. But instead of facing him on the field of battle Ryath took the cowards’ way out. He came during a celebration and waited till everyone was drunk and long since retired for the night to attack. Slipping in the night and shadows hiding like cowards and slaying everyone they had come across. Her father and brothers tried to fight, but drunk and drugged as they were had no true chance.

That was they day their kingdom fell, and her world fell apart. Alexandria had been woken by her mother as she raised a blade above the young girls heart. Giving what was meant to be the killing blow to Alexandria, a blade straight to the heart. Her mother having her dragged and tossed on the pile of bodies that were to be burned. There she was thought dead yet somehow still holding on. Within her mind Alexandria screamed to god...or to any god that would listen, to give her the strength to survive. And as the flames ate at the bodies of her family she found herself moving. Crawling towards the small bit of light that she could see. The last thing she remembered from that night was a hand reaching into the bodies and flames to pull her from it. It wasn't till several days later that she woke up in the hidden away hut of the old healer that had been teaching her. She still had no idea who had saved her and why, promising that one day she would repay the debt owed. But it was then and there that the hatred and hunger for revenge would drive her to survive was born.

It wasn't till several years later that she surfaced again, no one knows where the last living heir to the lands throne disappeared to. The name nothing more then a whispered rumor of her survival. The woman that walked the lands now went by the name Runa. The young woman had become something entirely different from the loving woman she once was. Now she found herself traveling in the lands she had fled to, The Kingdom of Sahal had become her home and if she had it her way it would be the force that help bring about her revenge.

She became a warrior, a killer unlike most others. Using poisons, pressure points and throwing weapons.  Knowing that she could not match brute force strength. She had clearly learned to use her speed and agility to her advantage. Alexandria unable to return to her old home just yet took on the name Runa and started to travel, her heart still filled with loss and hatred that she had hoped would be quenched. She became the silent killer of kings, the ghost that came in the night to kill those that had shame themselves. What will she become in the end Runa still doesn't know. Part of her still trying to find what it is that will finally stop the hunger within her.

[Shjade]

Marissa, with the way you have described life in the South, I would assume that most of the Warlords would see each other as rivals and at best they would honor some loosely held truce?
Or did you have another opinion of the internal power structure?

I'm willing to bet how the Warlords get along will depend a great deal on how their High King/Queen says they should which, since there isn't one yet, leaves that a little bit up in the air. If the High Warlord (yay gender neutralish) were the more barbaric indifferent type, the Warlords would probably be more apt to off each other for succession or generally do whatever the hell they want. If the High Warlord's a more world domination type who intends to use the rest of Sahal to support their push to take the rest of the continent, they'd probably be more interested in making sure their people aren't killing each other off. Y'know, just for instance. So I'd imagine these questions would probably rely somewhat on the writeup of whomever plays the Sahal "royalty" role(s), unless, of course, no one picks those up.

[Malrunar]

Hey! I'm very much interested in this. Is there any specific type of female character needed right now? Be that stemming from any particular fiefdom or class?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Indeed. Any news on when you expect we can start? when the royal families have been filled...?

I think we have enough characters to start. At the bare minimum, we need at least an Emperor, Grand Duke and High King to begin in earnest (or their female counterparts) although I certainly won't object to other characters too while we wait.

Marissa, with the way you have described life in the South, I would assume that most of the Warlords would see each other as rivals and at best they would honor some loosely held truce?
Or did you have another opinion of the internal power structure?

I think Shjade summed it up perfectly. Force, or the threat thereof, holds sway in Sahal, and the High King (or Queen, or Warlord as Shjade brilliantly pointed out) typically holds that position because they have the ability to crush anyone who defies them. As such, order is dependent on how involved they're willing to get in keeping their subjects in check. That said, most Warlords tend to view one another as rivals and factionalism is quite common.

I'm working on both my idea's as we speak. :) I put a lot of work in my CS but I will try and get them up as soon as possible.

Both of your characters are approved. Welcome aboard, Kitten.

EDIT: Actually for your second character, just for reference, has she become a Sahali warlord, or has she just become a retainer to a warlord?

Hey! I'm very much interested in this. Is there any specific type of female character needed right now? Be that stemming from any particular fiefdom or class?

At present we're currently in need of the main monarchs of each faction, regardless of gender, if you're interested in playing them, but don't feel obligated to play them if you don't want to. If memory serves, the Grand Duchy is a bit of a sausagefest at the moment, so if you'd rather play a regular noble I think they're still in need of some females.

[CurvyKitten]

YAAY Is there an occ and ic yet...want to make sure I didn't miss that post.

And as for Runa I am fine with having her play the second to one of the warlords already in play. Playing it cool till it's time to take her own power back, to keep the game from being to overloaded by them.  If now one wants that either be a warlord...or I can just have her as a solo operator.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Sure thing. I'll leave you and whoever's playing a Warlord to figure out who you're serving with. The threads aren't up yet. I'll probably wait until we have our monarchs, but I may set up before then if it takes too long.

[CurvyKitten]

Coolcool!

Any of the Warlords want a second in command?

[Strifesblaze7]

Axon wouldn't want to be betrayed but he could take her, lol

[CurvyKitten]

Axon wouldn't want to be betrayed but he could take her, lol

Wonder what you mean by take her :P

[Strifesblaze7]

Hah!!! Well, how do you want her taken. XD

[doodasaurus]

I could probably play a prince if you're looking for royal family members!

[CurvyKitten]

Hah!!! Well, how do you want her taken. XD

Well seeing as she would soooo kick is butt...:P

She wont betray him unless he screws her over first. If and when she ever gets a chance to get back her lands or kill whom ever was responsible for her families death she may be your with me or against me type thing. But we shall see when we get there. Still actually brain storming on her sexual nature..if that makes sense lol.

[Strifesblaze7]

He is good to his people. XD

[CurvyKitten]

He is good to his people. XD

All right that works we can work out some details like how long she has been on his "team" and so forth in pms. :)

[Strifesblaze7]

Okay, PM me anytime.

[Ember Star]

I'm working on a Queen character. Which factor needs a Queen?

[CurvyKitten]

I'm pretty sure all the countries do at this point and time.

OH if anyone else wants to work out some BG details with either of my girls feel free to pm me. :) I love the links that lead to rp goodness. lol

[Countdown0]

Well, given that Aeren is going to be acting as the Imperial Bodyguard and possibly a military advisor in this, Elizabetha would probably be at least somewhat acquainted with him.

[CurvyKitten]

That be cool and makes sense, he has probably known her for a good part of her life. Probably the guard that her father trusted to go after her when she would disappear :P Maybe he even was the one that taught her some of the swordsmanship or archery that she sooo wanted to know. Feel free to pm away to work out some more details. :)

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Hey everyone. Unfortunately, Odanrav has had to drop out of the game due to a few ongoing commitments of his own in real life. On the positive side, in order to speed things up, I'm going to adopt the roles of the heads of state, and manage them as GM so we should be able to get things off the ground soon-ish. I do have to go to class soon though, so if anyone still wants to claim those roles, you still have a little time.

Doodasaurus, a prince would be most welcome. Ember, all factions are currently in need of a Queen, so pick which ever one suits you best. :-)

[Caela]

This looks like a lot of fun. Since you've said repeatedly that you need Royals, I work up a Grand Duchess. Am thinking someone with her own lands and a strong independent streak. Definitely going to end up on the Duchy side of the line lol, being sent to the conference with the intention (of her Monarch) that she make a strong alliance through marriage.

Though she's independent enough that she'll only follow that intention if she finds someone she can respect at the very least.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Hey Caela, I'd love to have you aboard. Just for clarification, the Grand Duchess is the monarch for the Grand Duchy faction. If you do make that character, I'd really appreciate it. It'd save me having to make the head of state for the Grand Duchy myself.

[Caela]

Hey Caela, I'd love to have you aboard. Just for clarification, the Grand Duchess is the monarch for the Grand Duchy faction. If you do make that character, I'd really appreciate it. It'd save me having to make the head of state for the Grand Duchy myself.

Ahhh, hadn't intended to make a full blown Monarch but have no problem with doing so unless Ember was planning to make the Duchy's Queen. She did say she was making a Queen character first so I wouldn't want to step on her toes that way and can easily shift my gal down to a Princess or Duchess. I'll wirte her up and see where she fits. :)

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Ahhh, hadn't intended to make a full blown Monarch but have no problem with doing so unless Ember was planning to make the Duchy's Queen. She did say she was making a Queen character first so I wouldn't want to step on her toes that way and can easily shift my gal down to a Princess or Duchess. I'll wirte her up and see where she fits. :)

Sure thing. Definitely don't feel obligated to play a full blown Monarch if you don't want to. I'm about to head off, but I look forward to seeing what you come up with :-)

[Ember Star]

*shakes head* 'Tis fine. I've only gotten so far as to name her and find a picture for her. I'll take one of the other two. Possibly The Selician Empire but I'm not sure yet.

[Caela]

Name: Moiraine Eiral Hamilton
Title: Grand Duchess of Nobles
Faction: Duchy of Nobles
Age: 29
Sexual Orientation: Straight/Poly

Goal: Peace between her nation and that of Selecia even if it means marrying a Selecian Noble to attain. What she won't give up is her own Nobles freedom on their own lands.

Personality: Kindhearted and wickedly intelligent by nature there isn't a Noble in the Duchy that would be fool enough to try to take advantage of her good graces. Her upbringing and training have tempered her kindheartedness with a fierce determination, an iron will, a strong sense of justice, a love of her own (and her Nobles) freedom and a deep desire to retain the rights her people carved for themselves out of the wilderness. She cares nothing for the Empire and is more than willing to go to war with them but would prefer to simply live at peace with them if possible.

Appearance: Moiraine stands at an imposing (for a woman) 5'10 in her bare feet and is usually pushed closer to, if not slightly over, 6' by the heeled boots she is known for wearing. Bucking tradition she doesn't parade around in silks with her hair perfectly coiffed (instead her mane of midnight curls is usually falling in a riotous wave down her back) but prefers the soft touch of suede pants tucked into stout leather boots and tunics made of the most finely spun wool. It's not unusual for her to be seen striding through her own palace in such attire or for her to add a cloak, trimmed in the fur of a wolf she killed herself, to go out riding and hunting with the men on her estates.

Biography: Born to a Grand Duke who had wanted a son, and had no other children (her mother having died in childbirth), Moiraine (Moira to her friends) was raised as he would have raised a son. Instead of learning embroidery and needlepoint, she was taught the skills of leadership and warfare. Instead of learning how to be a good wife and run a house, she was taught strategy and how to run a Kingdom. Her father himself taught her the use of a sword and took great pride in her skill on horseback and with a bow.

By the time she was 10 she was riding out on hunts with men two and three times her age and bringing down bigger game from a greater distance.

By the time she was 15 she could, easily, beat her father, and his advisers, at any game of strategy they threw at her...even when they cheated or banded together against her.

By 20 her father was giving her ever more responsibility. Putting her in charge of their own lands in the mountains where she killed the wolf whose pelt became a part of the cloak she still wore.

At 26 her father died in battle, leaving in the entirety of the Duchy of Nobles for someone to rule far sooner then she would have anticipated or wanted. Given her relative youth at the time she was surprised when the Nobles voted on her to follow in her father's footsteps, particularly with the possibility of war looming, but she had been trained to rule from her earliest memories and took her father's mantle with a firm and just hand when they did come to a consensus. For the most part she expects her Nobles to take care of their own problems but her Court is open when they can't, or when a problem arises between Nobles. She also holds ideas about the rights of the Common Man and what a Noble owes to his/her vassals and will, occasionally hear cases if it seems clear the Noble is truly abusing those he is supposed to also be caring for.

Now she is allowing herself to be drawn to a peace conference because she wants no terms agreed to that she didn't agree to herself. She will listen to the advice and counsel of the Nobles that come as well, but in the end any treaty will be signed by her own hand, not by a proxy. She is willing to take a husband if that is a part of the terms, but only if he is a man she can respect and only if he can accept the fact that once she gives him an heir she will continue to take lovers where, and when, she chooses.

She won't be willing to give up her own freedom any more than she will give up that of her Nobles.   

[Strifesblaze7]

Who is that model? She is friggin hot.

[Countdown0]

She plays Morgana on BBC's "Merlin". Her name is Katie McGrath.

[Chronoclasm]

Hurrah, Duchy boys!: We not only have a leader, now, we've also got a lady in the band! Welcome to the Duchy, Caela. Hope you enjoy your time representing us pack of freedom-loving fellows.

[Caela]

Countdown beat me too it lol. She's a British actress.

[Strifesblaze7]

She is wow. XD

[Caela]

Hurrah, Duchy boys!: We not only have a leader, now, we've also got a lady in the band! Welcome to the Duchy, Caela. Hope you enjoy your time representing us pack of freedom-loving fellows.

Hehehe...thanks! Having so many men about is part of why I gave her that touch of swagger and made her able to hunt and defend herself.

Being at a Conference with other Heads of State and having to dress appropriately for the occasion is going to drive her bonkers! lol

[Caela]

She is wow. XD

lol Strife...she's also one of my characters over in the WW thread.

[Strifesblaze7]

And why do you think I was so willing to pair with her, dear Caela, lol.

[Ember Star]

Katie McGrath is a dream for sure. Love her!

[doodasaurus]

Name: Aurelius Magnus the Explorer

Title: Prince of Selicia

Faction: Selician Empire

Age: 29

Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual

Goal: To neutralize the enemies of the Empire to allow the Empire to refocus its energies internally, restoring good administration to the metropole and defend the remaining periphery.

Personality: Aurelius is a quick witted man and he knows it.  He has great confidence in his own abilities, his position and he seems to have an absolutely certain knowledge of where he's going and how to get there.  In public, he is fond of wit, athletic contests, fine wine, music.  In private, he is interested in navigation, astronomy, mathematics, geography, history and their intersections in politics and war.

Appearance: Aurelius is a big man, broad-shouldered, long limbed with big hands.  He smiles a lot, his eyes are piercing blue and he laughs loudly, his hair is light brown.  In court, he is a bit of a peacock - he shows off his immense wealth by dressing to impress.  At sea, he's all business, but almost no one other than his sailors see him there, it is the general consensus among aristocracy that he's a popinjay.

Biography: Aurelius, though a prince, is the third son from the throne.  His mother died in childbirth and his father has never forgiven him for it.  His early years were spent entirely in the company of nannies and the children of lesser imperial noblemen, but even then his proclivities showed.  By the time he was ten, he was organizing the boys into regiments and setting them into battles against each other, making siege engines that threw leather balls instead of stones and commandeering small watercraft to act out naval battles and marine landings.

He was also a big, athletic boy.  He was always running about, full blast, climbing and jumping over things, getting into wrestling matches, swordfights with sticks.  He was full of energy, often frenetically so, often unable to sleep due to his restlessness where he snuck around the castle, hearing and seeing things no young boy should.

When he started to train in arms, he took to it as a natural.  He not only did the physical exercises, but he devoured arms manuals and books of combat ranging from archery to wrestling.  He found that fighting was as much an exercise of the mind as the body and developed a concentration that would serve him very well, indeed, in the years to come.  In time, of course, he would develop preferences - the longsword and an anelace, an aggressive grappling style, time spent climbing mountains and exploring the heights of the world around him.

Initially, he was paired against his elder brothers in order to set off their skills, but even at a younger age, Aurelius was time and again able to overcome his brothers' achievements.  He would unseat them with the lance, beat them in melee.  He could pick up a glove on the ground at a full gallop.  He was strong and charismatic, seeming to thrive in his father's dislike, all the while getting a group of loyal men about him.  It was becoming a serious problem.

When he was nineteen, the age at which a younger son often becomes dangerous, when they start to feel their power and dream of a crown, the Emperor put Aurelius at the head of a fleet with orders to explore the southern waters.  It was considered a death sentence.  He left with nine ships and almost a thousand men.

Six-and-a-half years later, he returned with three ships, and half of the remaining crew exotic foreigners.  Only a hundred Imperials survived.  But the holds of the ships were filled with gold, jewels, ivory, spices.  He had explored two-and-a-half thousand miles of coastline, not even counting the rivers.  He returned with maps and journals of his explorations and even conquests of strange places and strange peoples.  He brought back the hides of exotic animals and even a few living ones.  Even after the crown took sixty percent, what remained was enough to make Aurelius one of the richest men in the world.  It was a total triumph for the young prince, who afterward was nicknamed "the Explorer" and his journey "the Grand Expedition".

Since then, he has made it a point to support the crown prince.  He has been a model aristocrat, performing all tasks with great efficiency.  He has made an additional trip, lasting a year, to southern waters, returning to expand his fortune, he has lead armadas against the Empire's enemies with valor, daring and wisdom . . . the plunder of cities also tending to increase his wealth and prestige. 

He is considered the foremost sailor in the Empire and a skilled general, too, using rivers and seas as highways to transport large numbers of troops across large distances swiftly, to strike against undefended or unprepared targets and escaping.  Against the rebels, he has the nickname of "the Barracuda" because his ships turn up in unexpected places in a bloody frenzy - but have vanished by the time the Empire's enemies arrive in force.  Some people say he only fights easy battles and gains easy victories - he laughingly agrees, turns it into a joke that he is smart enough to only fight those battles he can win.  (People who know him better, especially those who were the Grand Expedition, realize this is nonsense - he wins battles because he is a master navigator and admiral, showing great fortitude and leadership at sea to project overwhelming force where he needs it to be.  But the land armies favored by so many see only the end result - destroyed cities and surprise attacks in supposedly safe places, then a rapid retreat.  He doesn't want to conquer the land of the Empire's enemies, simply destroy their ability to wage war.)

He is now well past the age where he would be expected to have a wife.  He has had plenty of mistresses and more than one bastard, but marrying him has political complications.  He is already a powerful and extremely wealthy lord.  If he marries into more land, wealth and titles, he would rival the Emperor in power.  But a lesser marriage would be an insult to his power and wealth.  It is an intractable situation, but also politically useful because whoever did marry him would be party to his political power and incredible wealth - so the idea of marrying him is a good political bargaining chip.

He is also a noted duelist.  He's fought seven duels, including one against three brothers with on him and a single second, and won them all.  He loves athletic contests of the catch-as-catch-can variety, and boasts of only having lost twice in all his bouts, as well as footraces across difficult terrain and steeplechases.  He jousts when he can and is considered excellent.

[doodasaurus]

And I agree about Kate McGrath.  ;D

[Caela]

Katie McGrath is a dream for sure. Love her!

As do I. I love the depth she managed to give Morgana in "Merlin". You knew she was a conniving bitch...but you also knew why she was a conniving bitch and could actually manage to feel sorry for her!

[doodasaurus]

A question, GM-type people!

A couple of players seem to make mention of gunpowder, including naval bombardment and use of pistols in battle.  I had been assuming that the technological levels of the game were essentially medieval and that if gunpowder existed it was not yet a major battlefield weapon, but the technologies described appear to be Age of Sail, sixteenth century and onward.  Additionally, the suggestion seemed to be that the Sahalians (Sahalese?) either didn't have or had far fewer guns.

So, I guess I have two questions.

To what extent does gunpowder play a role in war in the game?  And if it plays a significant battlefield role, is there a serious technological or material advantage enjoyed by one side over the other?

[Caela]

A question, GM-type people!

A couple of players seem to make mention of gunpowder, including naval bombardment and use of pistols in battle.  I had been assuming that the technological levels of the game were essentially medieval and that if gunpowder existed it was not yet a major battlefield weapon, but the technologies described appear to be Age of Sail, sixteenth century and onward.  Additionally, the suggestion seemed to be that the Sahalians (Sahalese?) either didn't have or had far fewer guns.

So, I guess I have two questions.

To what extent does gunpowder play a role in war in the game?  And if it plays a significant battlefield role, is there a serious technological or material advantage enjoyed by one side over the other?

The Empire and the Grand Duchy are roughly on even terms when it comes to technological advancement, as they possess their own manufacturing bases. They sort of straddle the line between the High Medieval and Early Italian Renaissance eras. As you rightly point out, the Kingdom of Sahal is much more behind them in terms of technological advancement. They manufacture little beyond the most basic products and the majority of what they possess comes from what they're able to capture or plunder from others.

[Chronoclasm]

I asked a similar question of our esteemed GM, and this was the response:

Self destruct engaged: Technology straddles the line somewhere between the High Medieval period and the very, very early Italian Renaissance. Things like cannon and primitive, single-shot firearms are in existence, but in limited number and often designated to priority regions or armies.

EDIT: P.S., I like your character, doodasaurus.

[doodasaurus]

Chronclasm, ah!  I had missed that.  That exactly answers my question.  My assumptions of 14th century technology were more or less right!  Thank you!

[CurvyKitten]

Doodasaurus we should chat a bit since we both have Royals in the Selician Empire. With him being their prince I am guessing that makes them siblings? I'm just a bit confused if there is more then one Royal family?

[Countdown0]

A question, GM-type people!

A couple of players seem to make mention of gunpowder, including naval bombardment and use of pistols in battle.  I had been assuming that the technological levels of the game were essentially medieval and that if gunpowder existed it was not yet a major battlefield weapon, but the technologies described appear to be Age of Sail, sixteenth century and onward.  Additionally, the suggestion seemed to be that the Sahalians (Sahalese?) either didn't have or had far fewer guns.

So, I guess I have two questions.

To what extent does gunpowder play a role in war in the game?  And if it plays a significant battlefield role, is there a serious technological or material advantage enjoyed by one side over the other?

My understanding is that gunpowder is relatively new and not in wide use. My character makes regular use of it, and even favors using pistols over any other means of combat, but he is a very young naval officer. Most of his elders in the Imperial Military probably don't bother to take the time to understand, and the Sahali likely don't have the funding to properly produce and maintain the most advanced weapons of the time. Again, my character has a ship armed with cannons, but it is a new ship, and likely one of only a small number in the world.

The Empire and the Duchy, by what I've gathered, do have access to gunpowder based weapons, though not in any great number, and the Warlods of Sahal probably only get any if they steal it or take it from battlefields after the fact.

Of course, I could be entirely wrong.

Also, I don't think that there is more than one royal family in the Empire, so they are probably siblings. This does create a problem though, in that CurvyKitten's character was made as the Imperial Princess before hand, so it brings up the issue of Aurelius' mother dying during child birth, since Elizabetha is younger by 10 years right now.

[Ember Star]

Doodasaurus we should chat a bit since we both have Royals in the Selician Empire. With him being their prince I am guessing that makes them siblings? I'm just a bit confused if there is more then one Royal family?

Yes. There is. There are multiple "royal families" within each faction from my understanding,

[CurvyKitten]

Also, I don't think that there is more than one royal family in the Empire, so they are probably siblings. This does create a problem though, in that CurvyKitten's character was made as the Imperial Princess before hand, so it brings up the issue of Aurelius' mother dying during child birth, since Elizabetha is younger by 10 years right now.

Nods~ hence my confusion with it all, but I am sure we can work it out together. Perhaps his mother died giving birth to her? And I think MarissaSeraphOfInsanity wanted to have the whole family alive? Not really sure.

[Countdown0]

Yes. There is. There are multiple "royal families" within each faction from my understanding,

I don't think there would be multiple royal families within just the Empire. There would be the Emperor and Empress, and their children, who would be the Princes and Princesses. The idea that Imperial Royalty would allow other peoples' children to also be referred to as a "Prince" or "Princess" of the entire Empire doesn't seemed right to me.

[Caela]

My understanding is that gunpowder is relatively new and not in wide use. My character makes regular use of it, and even favors using pistols over any other means of combat, but he is a very young naval officer. Most of his elders in the Imperial Military probably don't bother to take the time to understand, and the Sahali likely don't have the funding to properly produce and maintain the most advanced weapons of the time. Again, my character has a ship armed with cannons, but it is a new ship, and likely one of only a small number in the world.

The Empire and the Duchy, by what I've gathered, do have access to gunpowder based weapons, though not in any great number, and the Warlods of Sahal probably only get any if they steal it or take it from battlefields after the fact.

Of course, I could be entirely wrong.

Also, I don't think that there is more than one royal family in the Empire, so they are probably siblings. This does create a problem though, in that CurvyKitten's character was made as the Imperial Princess before hand, so it brings up the issue of Aurelius' mother dying during child birth, since Elizabetha is younger by 10 years right now.

I don't think Curvy's character being younger needs to be a problem; Daddy could have gotten remarried and she's the little half-sister.

[Countdown0]

True, but that brings up the questions of whether or not Curvy is okay with her character being 4th in line for the throne in order of birth. She might have expected Elizabetha to be the first in line for the throne after the Emperor or Empress passed or abstained.

[Ember Star]

well this also create problems with my character seeing as how I planned to kill off most of her family to make things easier. I just assumed there were more than one since MSOI's character is technically of the empire but functions independently.

I shall wait, because if she wants an older empress with kids and all, I'll take a different direction with my character and just make a independent queen or something.

[Countdown0]

Yeah, we definitely need Marissa to be the one who makes the decisions here. We'll just have to wait and see what she decides.

[doodasaurus]

Curvy, yeah, I made my c-sheet without reference to yours, pretty obviously.  Like Countdown said, there are a few issues that should be sorted - like how my guy's mom died in childbirth ten years before your character was born.  ;D

They would likely be siblings, perhaps half-siblings, like Caela suggested.  It seems to me the simplest way to resolve potential conflicts is to say that they had different mothers, that the Emperor married again after Aurelius' mother died.  That said, I'm not bonded to the idea that Aurelius' mother died in childbirth - the Emperor could just hate Aurelius 'cause sometimes people just *do*.  Alternately, he could be a man of princely rank from a different branch of the Imperial house.  There are plenty of ways to do it and resolve any tensions that seem to exist, IMO.

While they would certainly know each other, from the time she was six to thirteen, he was on the Grand Expedition and much of the time afterward, they wouldn't precisely travel in the same circles.  OR they could be quite close, Aurelius feeling protective or even disliking his sister.  ;D

Countdown, my education is in the history of technology, but I don't want to turn this game into a history lesson but I was going through character sheets and people were mentioning gunpowder murder and naval bombardment which suggested technologies around 200 years after what I was assuming! If there are some pistols and naval cannons, that's certainly okay with me, I was simply unsure of the general level of technology.

Ember, are here more issues to discuss?  ;D

[Countdown0]

Well, I just saw that guns and cannons were in to an extent, as Marissa said, and since no one else was jumping at that particular bit, I decided to make my character be "the guy with the gun(s)" so to speak.

I guess the only issue is whether Curvy was planning on being first in line for the throne or not. If she was, your character being the Imperial Prince definitely changes that a bit. Still, I'm certain that you guys could work it out. I'm just confused and am seeking a solution >.< Right now I'm trying to visualize the world, and logically piece things together and make everything fit so that I can make my character fit as best as I can, you know?

[Ember Star]

*shakes head* Nope. I'm backing out of the Empress position and going back to my original plan, a Queen of a independent country which history lays heavily in horsemenship (loosely based off of Rohan in Lord of the Rings). I've played queens and empresses with kids before, so I'm quite capable of doing it. But I simply don't feel like it this time around.

[doodasaurus]

Countdown, that's aight with me.  I just wanted to be sure the technology was fourteenth century and not sixteenth.  No way some filthy barbarians could threaten a civilized country in the sixteenth century.  ;D

Ember, cool.  I just didn't wanna mess up anyone's stuff.  I'm quite willing to work with and/or change things on my sheet to cross all the Ts and dot all the Is!

[Chronoclasm]

*shakes head* Nope. I'm backing out of the Empress position and going back to my original plan, a Queen of a independent country which history lays heavily in horsemenship (loosely based off of Rohan in Lord of the Rings). I've played queens and empresses with kids before, so I'm quite capable of doing it. But I simply don't feel like it this time around.

Have you considered being the young, strong High Queen of Sahal? I imagine horsemanship is very important to that country, and you'd fill a niche that needs filling. Though you'd have a bunch of warlords plotting to put themselves in your throne. :P

[Ember Star]

Have you considered being the young, strong High Queen of Sahal? I imagine horsemanship is very important to that country, and you'd fill a niche that needs filling. Though you'd have a bunch of warlords plotting to put themselves in your throne. :P

I did consider that. I just wasn't sure I wanted her to be that... warish? It could work though. I'll fiddle with a few things and land on what I feel is best

[Ember Star]

okay. I'm taking the high queen

[Strifesblaze7]

Well not all the warlords would want her throne.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Oh gosh, this really took off while I was out so if I fail to address any questions that were asked just let me know.

Caela and Doodasaurus, both of your characters are approved. Caela, just a note on your character. The title of Grand Duchess isn't a hereditary one and is more similar to the election of a Pope; when a Grand Duke or Duchess dies, all the nobles gather together to vote for someone amongst their number to replace them. Typically the Grand Duchy dislikes dynasties, and nobles often band together to ensure that the dead monarch's descendants don't get elected as a matter of principle. That said, it's not unheard of and you don't need to make any changes to your character. I just bring it up as an editorial note for context.

As for our Prince and Princess of Selice, the conflict was between the mother dying, correct? I'm quite happy to handwave this as the Emperor remarrying after the death of his first(?) wife and the two of them being half-siblings. Unless there was some other contradiction with that reason that I've missed?

Doodasaurus, were your questions about gunpowder answered or was there something else that my previous responses had missed?

I can't remember who asked, but I think that the denonym for Sahal would most likely be Sahali.

On the issue of multiple royal families, it's just one "royal family" per faction. My character is a Duchess, and therefore a vassal of the Imperial royal family, but not a royal family member herself. I've used the term rather loosely, so I apologise, but in the Empire the royal family refers to the Emperor/Empress and their family members (our Prince and our Princess). In the Grand Duchy, the term refers to the currently reigning Grand Duke and Duchess and their family, but considering that the title isn't hereditary it's really more of an honorific rather than an actual title. The royal family in Sahal, and I once again use the term loosely since the only legitimate claim anyone has to the throne over there is the ability to take it, refers to the then-current High King/Queen and their family members.

I hope that's covered anything. If I've missed anything please let me know.

[AribethAmkiir]

Are you still in need of characters?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

The game should be up and running soon, but we're still currently accepting characters.

[LamentingQuill]

Name: Brielle St. Clair
Title: Lady Brielle (Title a courtesy from her beloved older sister)
Faction: Castiana.
Age: 18 Years Old
Sexual Orientation: Straight


Goal: To see her sister's goals accomplished. There is nothing Brielle would not do for Grace, she loves her sister more than anything else in the world. Brielle also hopes to find a good man to settle down with, someone whom will follow her sister as faithfully as she does.

Personality: Brielle has a very spunky and feisty disposition, she is intelligent  and learns new things very quickly. She is well versed in playing the part of the proper lady however, something she does out of love for her sister, Grace.

Brielle bares a very warm and kind heart, she always looks deeper for the good in others, but if you do anything to hurt anyone she cares for, especially her older sister, you had best watch out.

Biography:

Her entire life, Brielle has known nothing but a humble existence with very little money, only enough to keep her and her mother housed and just barely living.
Brielle has often asked her mother about her father, but frail sickly Liliana refused to answer those particular questions, she would merely sigh sadly and comment on how foolish she had been, that Brielle had been the only good thing to come out of the relationship.

When he mother succumbed to her sickness and died when Brielle was only sixteen, a local young man owning a somewhat  flourishing farm and a rather arrogant demeanor decided to step forward and bully Brielle in an engagement, fancying the beautiful blonde for himself.

However, on the eve that her wedding was meant to occur, a woman showed up on the farm belonging to her betrothed and claimed to her her older sister, the oldest daughter of her mysterious father.
Brielle wasn't sure what to believe, but there was nothing but concern and warmth in the eyes of the woman that had identified herself as Grace St. Clair, all of that and... truth.

Explaining to her sister that she did not want this marriage she was being bullied into, she thanked her lucky stars when her sister forbid the boy from ever coming near Brielle again and then took her back home with her, where Grace said she belonged.

Ever since that day, Brielle and Grace grew as close as any sisters could be, Brielle's loyalty and love for her sister unshakable and true to the core.

[RedEve]

Do any of the nobles have lands that border with Sahal?

My character might have plundered some villages in their domain, which would obviously make any meeting a bit awkward (and pretty awesome from an IC perspective).

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Sahal straddles the southern border of both the Empire and the Grand Duchy, so some nobles would share borders with it. Since all the fiefdoms are player created, I've left it up to you to decide where you're geographically located.

[RedEve]

It's mentioned in my CS that Xhadea and her merry band of marauding plunderers have been mostly roaming the border areas, so it would make sense that any nobleman who has his or her seat in this area would be aware of her existence.

[xPeachyPuff]

I'm interested in this (: I've PMed the GM, Marissa, asking a couple of questions.

- Rainbow ♥

[Caela]

Marissa, thanks for the heads up on the GD being voted into her position. I'll modify Moira's background a bit to reflect that. :)

[doodasaurus]

Marissa, I think the half-sibling answer is easiest and pretty normal for a world with fourteenth century technology and no magic.  Peeps be dyin' in childbirth all the time, even Empresses!  And the questions about technology have all been answered to my satisfaction, but I'm good at seeing that sort of stuff as being special effects for a character's proposed awesomeness!

I could come up with a lot of questions, too, Marissa, but they would include words like subinfeudation and Imperial administration, so I reckon I'll keep 'em under my big, ugly hat.  ;D

RedEve, considering how large a landowner Aurelius naturally is, it is almost certain that he has at least *some* lands againt the Sahali border, though he does not administer them, himself.  Though along the borderlands, the territory is likely to be marches and they sorta exist to ward off invasions - and what are a few peasants/slaves/coloni among friends?  ;D

[Caela]

It's mentioned in my CS that Xhadea and her merry band of marauding plunderers have been mostly roaming the border areas, so it would make sense that any nobleman who has his or her seat in this area would be aware of her existence.

I would think that Moira would be aware of the problems Xhadea can cause along the border. She'd expect her border Nobles to handle her for the most part though she'd certainly be willing to send troops to help if the Noble in question needed them.

[RedEve]

I'd be more something that might be an issue should they meet at the actual conference.

[Countdown0]

Depending on how much trouble she causes, Aeren would possibly be aware of Xhadea, especially if she poached Imperial territory a lot. The question is, does she ever stay and skirmish with the Imperial military, or does she hit her target and slip away before anyone can do or say anything about it? If she stuck around, they may have even been on the same battlefield when they were a couple of years younger.

[AribethAmkiir]

Name: Ellya Helen Hellatius
Title: Duchess of the Fallen Spire
Faction: Selician Empire
Age: 20
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual

Goal:  Ellya wants to return her House to prominence.  Her presence at the peace summit is threefold; to demonstrate House Hellatius’ loyalty to the Empire, to strengthen the alliances amongst the Imperials, and to form new alliances and trade agreements with the nobles of the Grand Duchy.

Personality: Ellya is a compassionate and passionate young woman.  She is eager to be heard, though wise enough to hold her tongue and knows when she shouldn't speak.  She respects the traditions of the empire though, at heart, she disagrees with certain decrees.  She believes she, or any woman, can rule just as well as a man, if not better.  Ellya values honesty, honor, loyalty, kindness, justice, and family.  Above all she wants what's best for her people and the empire.  She enjoys pursuing knowledge, hawking, lawn games, horseback riding, dancing, and helping others.  She prefers art and culture over warfare.

Appearance: Ellya is statuesque and slender with feminine curves.  She is of average height and build.  Her brown hair is often worn elegantly, though when not in public she prefers to wear it loose and long; it falls to her waist.  Her skin is unblemished and the color of cream.

Biography: Ellya was the youngest child, with two older brothers, of House Hellatius, a family line which had existed within the Empire for three hundred years.  Her great grandfather had been a trusted advisor in military and domestic matters to the Emperor, a position the House had occupied until Ellya’s older brothers’ deaths.  The eldest made the decision to hold his ground against overwhelming Grand Duchy forces; a decision that cost him his life, while Ellya’s other brother committed his forces against superior numbers in an attempt to regain the lost territory.  Now, Ellya is the only surviving heir to House Hellatius’ ancestral holdings.  Her father, while still alive, is bedridden and the family physicians believe he won’t last the year.

Ellya herself was raised by a governess and hardly knew her brothers or father, her mother died when she was young.  Despite this she was given everything she ever needed, aside from a parent’s love.  She was provided with the best education available in the empire and excelled in etiquette, diction, and articulation.  As a very young girl her compassion was limitless and unbridled.  She was known to smuggle injured animals into her bedchambers and attempt to nurse them back to health.  Eventually, she grew out of this habit and learned to guard her heart more carefully, even as her tutors slowly directed her education toward the healing arts.

Ellya is renown throughout the empire for her ability to heal and for founding charities for the ill and wounded soldiers.  She often visits the wounded soldiers who've been brought back from the front lines and has become far from squeamish at the sight of blood, disfigurement, or death.

While Ellya grieved for the loss of her brothers, as a dutiful sister, she was more shocked by the Emperor’s reaction and the fallout from her brothers’ defeats.  Since then, she has redoubled her efforts in the Empire and done her best to strengthen her House’s relationships with other Imperial Houses.  She fears another failure from her House may cause the Emperor to strip her family of land and title.

If her father had his way he would’ve married Ellya off years ago, however, the loss of his sons and his failing health have prevented him from arranging a suitable marriage.  This suits her as it places her in the uncommon position of arranging her own marriage.  House Hellatius’ holdings are prosperous and full of resources; the northern forests provide game and timber, numerous silver and gold mines litter the mountain ranges of their western border, and the Whitecap Bay allows access to the eastern sea. 

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Your character is approved, Aribeth. I'm going to put a shout out that we're in need of an Emperor. Once we have that and Ember's High Queen character, we should be able to commence.

[doodasaurus]

I am all about commencing.  I think commencing should happen ASAP.  ;D

[Caela]

I am all about commencing.  I think commencing should happen ASAP.  ;D

I second this motion!

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

And I third this motion! Bangs her gavel. The motion has passed ;D

[Countdown0]

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

*dances happily*

[Caela]

And I third this motion! Bangs her gavel. The motion has passed ;D

Woohoo!!!

[doodasaurus]

*high fives Caela*  Thanks for the assist.  ;D

[Caela]

*high fives Caela*  Thanks for the assist.  ;D

~grins~ Anytime!

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

I'll try to put up an OOC thread and a page for character sheets this afternoon, and might even get an IC thread up just to be a tease.

[doodasaurus]

I'll try to put up an OOC thread and a page for character sheets this afternoon, and might even get an IC thread up just to be a tease.

Aren't you, like, in Australia?  I'm not sure that saying "this afternoon" means much to me.  When is that?  In an hour?  Two days?  Does the international date line get involved?  I DON'T KNOW.  ;D

[Chronoclasm]

Aren't you, like, in Australia?  I'm not sure that saying "this afternoon" means much to me.  When is that?  In an hour?  Two days?  Does the international date line get involved?  I DON'T KNOW.  ;D

Well, right now it's 10:00 PM EST. Which makes it about 02:00 AM, GMT. Australia is somewhere between +8 and +10 GMT. Which means several things.

First. It means THAT OUR GM IS FROM THE FUTURE!!! and it's Thursday over there.

Second. It means that it's somewhere between 10:00 AM and noon for her, and this afternoon is just a few hours away.

[doodasaurus]

Dude, the future?!  That's no fair!  *shakes fist*

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Yes, I'm from the future and that means my posts TECHNICALLY COUNT AS TIME TRAVEL!!! :o

As Chrono said, it's currently noon over here. So I guess they'll go up after I've had my breakfast (I don't care what the time is. It's my first meal of the day.) and a shower and a few other odds and ends. So within the next couple of hours, depending on how long it takes me to feel beautiful enough to confront a day of watching cartoons in my underwear like a productive member of society XD

[Countdown0]

Well, its late here, so most people wouldn't be awake to possibly reply to things this Australian afternoon. I, however, am semi-nocturnal :D

[Strifesblaze7]

It is only 8 P.M. for me.

[Caela]

11pm for me and I have to be up early to get the mini off to school. :) Will look forward to seeing the threads when I wake up on my tomorrow. :D

[doodasaurus]

I am just online all the time.  I would say I have no life, but that's not true.  I actually do a lot of things, it's just that most of them involve me being six feet away from a computer.  :p

[AribethAmkiir]

Any Imperialists up for some collaboration?

[doodasaurus]

I am a happy collaborator with all comers!  ;D

[Countdown0]

What kind of collaberation, Aribeth? Also, did you get that name from Neverwinter Nights?

[AribethAmkiir]

Yes, I took Aribeth from NWN.

Collaborate about joint character histories, that type of stuff.

[Countdown0]

That game was awesome :D

So, interactions between them before the RP takes place? I'd like to do that. I've already done a bit of it with another Imperial character, but I think the important people at the peace conference would probably know eachother at least a little bit if they are from the same faction =D

[doodasaurus]

Since almost all of the characters are high ranking nobles, I just generally assume they at least know *of* each other.  I mean, it seems highly likely that Aeren and Aurelius know each other - they're near the same age, they're both great lords, they're both navy men.  How could they not know each other?  ;D

[Countdown0]

This is true. They have probably even been in some battles together, sinking pirates and Sahali scum en route to claiming glory for the Empire.

[RedEve]

So what is going on here? :)

[AribethAmkiir]

So what is going on here? :)

Just hatching plot bunnies.

[Countdown0]

Bunnies hatch? O.o My world just got turned upsidedown :P

[Ember Star]

may I make a humble suggestion when you put up the character thread? At the top, please perhaps put a list for each faction and list what characters are a part of that faction and what their title/rank is?

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

I can indeed, my lovely.

Also, the OOC is currently up and running: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=181938.0

[Ember Star]

I can indeed, my lovely.

Also, the OOC is currently up and running: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=181938.0

Thank you! That'll make it easier to know who is what at a glance.

[xPeachyPuff]

I am hoping to get MC up later today. (:

- Rainbow

[doodasaurus]

If needed, I could also play the Emperor, to get things going and all!  :D

[Vostroya]

Saw your need and I would gladly play the Emperor if the spot is still open.  :-)

[doodasaurus]

I believe all your children would hate you.  ;D

[Ember Star]

I believe all your children would hate you.  ;D

And y'all may have wondered why I didn't want children. LOL.

[xPeachyPuff]

Here is my character sheet. Let me know what you think (: Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

- Rainbow ♥

]

Name: Kali Azar Charna.
Title: Princess
Faction: Kingdom of Sahal.
Age: 20 years.
Sexual Orientation: Bisexual, with a strong preference for men.

Goal: Kali's ultimate goal is to see everything end in distruction and chaos. She wants to mess things up at the conference and will try to have The Grand Duchy of Nobles and The Selician Empire to continue to fight one another, ultimately ending in her faction taking over them both. (She's never known anything different, but her goal may change depending on who she meets there.)

Personality: Kali enjoys playing dumb and acting as innocent as her looks will get her. She's used to getting what she wants and will do pretty much anything to get her own way. Mischievous and daring mixed with her blatant curiosity leads to more than one occasion of trouble; it seems to follow her wherever she goes. Her words tend to be blunt and harsh most of the time, even if she's friendly with someone. Kali finds it hard to trust most people, but when she develops that trust there's nothing stopping her from believing every word they say. Some may call her gullible, though she resents that. The youth isn't afraid to say or act most of the time, but when it comes to love she's very anxious and inexperienced. Kali can handle lust, but when it comes to her feelings she gets constantly confused and her hot temper doesn't help her from her words to her actions. Another trait which can become quite obvious is her stubbornness and she can get quiet possessive and jealous, depending on the person.

Over the years, Kali has picked up a few tricks when it comes to holding her own in battle. She relies on her speed and tiny stature most of the time and is deadly with a dagger. It is said that poison is a woman's weapon, however this woman would much prefer to stab you through the chest and what your blood spill.

Appearance: Standing at only 5'0", Kali is a short girl with porceline-like flesh. Her eyes are wide and a bright green colour lined with thick, dark lashes; as mentioned above, she uses her looks to appear innocent and sweet. Though her face may portray that of a young girl, her body makes it obvious she is a woman. She's fairly curvy with wider set hips and a larger bust than someone of her stature, creating what most would call an hour glass figure. Her hair reaches her hips in long, luscious curls and waves. It's a strange mix of colours, though she's mostly brunette with natural golden and red highlights.

Biography: Kali grew up in the Kingdom of Sahal, born to a single mother. Her father was some Warlord somewhere who'd happened upon their village and decided to fuck everything he possibly could, along with his men. Her mother had always told her that he wasn't a bad man, but Kali knew different. Being raised up was a bit of an understatement, it was more like she was dragged up. Her childhood wasn't great, but she stole what she wanted and managed to get along fine by herself. Her mother somehow managed to get involved with some nasty fuck who convinced her to earn more money by prostituting herself out to whoever could afford a pretty penny. Kali didn't venture home much after she found her mother in bed with three, bald, fat guys while her self proclaimed step father watched the whole thing. That was all she could take. She only ever returned home to pass on some food to her mother, though she wasn't even sure she got it; most of the time they weren't in, so she put it in the hidy whole her mother had showed her as a child.

Living on the streets was hard, by the age of nine she was practically a pro-thief and even ended up stealing for some other little street rats who couldn't survive alone. When she was around thirteen years old, Kali got into a confrontation with an older boy who'd come into her home, which was nothing more than a cardboard box in some alleyway that consisted of her and two little twin girls. She returned after a 'hunt' and saw him and two of his friends picking on the twins, being discusting like boys were. It didn't take her long to jump him, it was as if Kali had turned into some rabid animal, and that was when the fight broke out. Sure, she took a few nasty hits, had a black eye, knocked out some teeth and split her lip in not one but two places. In the end though, she'd bit him so hard that he started crying, calling her a mangy dog as he scrambled to his feet to flee; his friends were just sheep who ran after him, also in tears. It was the proudest she'd ever been, despite the damage to her body.

It wasn't long after the incident with the boys that the twins left; she just came back and they'd gone. She was accustomed to living alone, so it didn't bug her too much, though she couldn't hide her concern for the twins. She didn't see them again after that. When she reached the age of fifthteen, Kali met a woman named Annora Évreux, completely by chance. Kali had actually stolen something from one of the market stalls when she turned the corner and bumped into the woman who practically smuggled her to safety. Her thieving skills had improved over the years, but there was still times that she screwed up, mostly from fatigue; you had to keep your eyes open constantly on the streets, even more so at night. Annora and Kali became good friends and Kali even smuggled for her from time to time. The years were kind to their friendship and the two became closer very quickly. It was only when Annora came into her power that Kali became 'Princess', though it was more a title for her own enjoyment than being actual royalty; Kali was more like her 'second-in-command', her right hand woman, so to speak.

[MrBubbles]

]

Name: Valerian "Ironside" Magnus
Title: Emperor
Faction: The Selician Empire
Age: 51 years
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual

"My enemies are many, my equals are none. In the shadow of mighty castles old in honor they said Manneheim could never be conquered. In the land of brine and sand they said the merchant-kings of Valens could never be humbled. In the realm of forest and snow they said Krasnosk could never be tamed. Now they say nothing. They fear me, like a force of nature, a dealer in steel and death. I say I am Valerian. I am Emperor."

Goal: Valerian's goal is no less absolute than the total annexation of the Free Duchies, the dissolution of Sahal and the complete cessation of hostilities within the Empire. Valerian believes himself more than capable to achieve these goals through martial prowess, but for the time being he's willing to entertain the prospect of such aspirations being fulfilled at a peace summit. If neither of those goals seem feasible, he's willing to bide his time and acquire what "lost land" he can through swords, words or (given his status as a widower) the marriage bed.

Personality: Valerian has a mind of steel and stratagems, war and courtly intrigue. A life devoted to controlling an Empire steeped in conflict has made the Ironside a harsh, pragmatic and ultimately humorless man, his cold and calculating demeanor only exacerbated by the death of his wife during childbirth. Indeed, it is difficult to get the Emperor to smile at all, even amongst friends and family. Although Valerian could be described as a just and honorable man, he is ultimately willing to "do what needs to be done" in the name of aiding the Empire and her citizens.

Beneath his icy exterior however is a man that could best be described as tired. Paradoxically, the mastermind that has brought the Empire to victory again and again is tired of war and the ruin it causes, so much so that Valerian sees himself as a necessary evil; a monster created from the shortcomings of his forefathers that ultimately does not have a place in the world he is making ("An Emperor of Steel has no place in a Dominion of Silver.") Of course, such an internal opinion has rarely been brought up to others, especially in the presence of courtiers; amongst the nobility Valerian practically exudes an aura of power and control, granted to him both by the enormity of his title as well as the prestige brought upon by his extensive military conquests.

Appearance: Blessed with a powerful physique and hardy constitution, Valerian looks every bit the part of an Emperor-General. Broad-shouldered, tall and finely proportioned,  Valerian is unmistakable on the battlefield as a figure almost larger than life, especially when bedecked in his imperial raiment and escorted by his retinue. The ravages of time have left naught but a few wrinkles upon The Ironside's visage, although the sharp bite of steel tells a different tale; beyond a few nicks and cuts upon his face, Valerian's body is littered with the scars of a dozen blows, some more seemingly mortal than others.

Beyond his considerable physical attributes, Valerian is deceptively handsome for a man of his personality and station. With expressive gray-blue eyes and a finely weathered face dominated by a strong, square jaw covered in salt-and-pepper stubble (the same color as the stuff growing atop his head,) the Emperor has been described as looking like "some little girl's favorite grandfather," a stark contrast to his otherwise iron demeanor.

Biography: Born as the second son to Emperor Octavius, Valerian's early life was dominated by the specter of war and failure set by his predecessors. The sins of their forefathers weren't just a fact, they were a birthright; something Valerian experienced year after year as he saw his father head out for campaign, or look over ways to rebuild what remains following the inevitable cease-fire. It was because of the latter that Octavius was eventually known as "the Conciliator," but it was his failure at the former that made his penchant for politics a mere triviality and ultimately add nothing to the Empire's sphere.

This hypocrisy between the efficacy of diplomacy compared to military might was not lost on the young Valerian. Already showing a knack for command, Valerian's realization that martial skill was the only true means to end this endless conflict drove him further into his studies, learning from the great military commanders of the past and incorporating their tactics and strategies into his own.

By his 16th birthday, Valerian was given command of his own personal retinue for use in the Eastern front against the Free Duchies. It was there he cut his teeth as a general, earning a reputation for natural leadership and an innate understanding of warfare. As Valerian's prestige grew, murmurs of disposing Octavius's eldest son began, until eventually a plot was hatched to assassinate Valerian's brother to make him next in line for the throne. Although it's still difficult to say the extent of Valerian's involvement in this plot was, the effects were felt throughout the Empire; Valerian's brother was killed in a "tragic" hunting accident in the Imperial Woods near the capital, and upon hearing of the news Octavius had a heart attack.

With the Emperor indisposed and the line of succession in temporary disarray, the enemies of the Empire saw their chance to strike; Sahali hordes and Free Duchy hosts pushed into the Imperial borders a mere month after hearing of the hierarchical woes. Historians would later call this the "Imperial Campaign," but for Valerian it would be the tribulation that would earn him the moniker "Ironsides." After a year of brutal slaughter, Valerian (with the notable aid of his second-in-command, Hellatius) and his staggered forces remained standing, having broken the wills of his enemies and smote ruin upon many a Ducal/Bandit noble. During the fighting Octavius had passed away, making Valerian the new Emperor of Selicia, although the title at that point was only a formality; Selicians lowborn and high had seen him as the true leader of the Empire ever since his first string of victories.

The peace terms were generous, with the Empire regaining ancient Manneheim as tribute. To Valerian, it was not enough; the decades that followed the Imperial Campaign would be known as a Selician Resurgence, the Emperor seeking out independent countries unassociated with either the Sahal or Duchies and conquering them, although not all were won on the battlefield; the Republic of Valens was won through Valerian gaining a bride. Although the marriage was initially loveless, Valerian eventually grew fond of the woman, and through her he sired three sons... Although the last had cost Valerian his wife. Valerian eventually remarried (and had but a single daughter before that wife was lost to Slow Fever) but he had never been able to quite forgive his youngest son, Aurelius, for his role in his wife's death. Disgusted with the young man, Valerian eventually sent him away on an expedition to rid himself of the troublesome son.

It was in the campaign to retake Krasnosk that Valerian heard of Aurelius's return. Disappointed yet ultimately unsurprised at his son's luck in surviving his mission, Valerian elevated the young man to a notable position in the navy, giving honor where honor was due. The decades rolled on, and with them more wars; no matter how many Valerian won, the cycle of conflict continued; after all, for all his skill he was only one man. Even the death of the Duchies leader, Archduke Hamilton, in one of his campaigns did little to end the conflict, his position instead being given to the man's daughter. War became a routine, and as with all routines, Valerian grew tired of it... So when the chance for a proper peace summit held by an independent nation reached the Palace, Valerian was willing to entertain it's possibility of peace.

[CurvyKitten]

Sorry been a very bad few days, But I am back...some what. LOL Let me try and read and catch up a bit, did we decided something about the royal family thing?

[doodasaurus]

Curvy, I think it's complicated a bit because someone just apped the Emperor, but Marissa said that different mothers seemed a reasonable solution.

That said, I'm still willing to change Aurelius' character sheet to reflect a different parentage if necessary, or any other reasonable change!

[CurvyKitten]

Curvy, I think it's complicated a bit because someone just apped the Emperor, but Marissa said that different mothers seemed a reasonable solution.

That said, I'm still willing to change Aurelius' character sheet to reflect a different parentage if necessary, or any other reasonable change!

Well I know yours has several siblings, and the mother dying. I have no problem with different mothers. But I don't want to have her utterly useless as well.

And yeah I saw that we have a Emperor app, but the bio is in the making perhaps our Emperor could work with us as well to help everything work together? :)

[doodasaurus]

Curvy, our characters are fundamentally different, I think.  ;D

And I'm for whatever works best for all the parties involved.

[Love And Submission]

Is there a deadline for CS? I'm almost done I was just wondering.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Rainbow, your character is approved, as is yours Bubbles, pending your bio. And I'm sure he'd be happy to work with you in shaping the bio. If any contradictions arise in the bio, just let me know and we'll find a way to get them ironed out before we start.

Sorry Vostroya, I was in bed so I didn't get your PM and Bubbles got in first.

DTW, we should be beginning the game relatively soon but we're still waiting on one more submission before we begin. Just post your CS whenever you're ready and it should be fine.

[xPeachyPuff]

Yays :3

- Rainbow ♥

[MrBubbles]

Speaking of collaboration, if anyone wants to have Valerian and their character's paths intertwine just PM me and I'll work it into the Big E's backstory sometime tomorrow.

[Love And Submission]

Name: Augustus Von Cloud
Title: Future Duke Of Exmberg
Faction: Selician Empire
Age: Early Twenties
Sexual Orientation: Bi-Sexual

Goal: While Augustus knows the Sahal are nothing but brainless savages , He is  interested in meeting one. He has never seen one of them in person before. Their lack of education, and hygiene is truly fascinating to him and he wishes to attempt to converse with them. Perhaps through a series  of grunts or finger signs.



Personality: Augustus Von Cloud is an educated and well spoken man. Raised in Selcian Nobility , he's gained a taste for the finer things in life. Fine wine , pretty women and lavish parties are Augustus's normal interest but he also has a quest for knowledge. One cannot properly rule over the common man if he doesn't understand the way he thinks after all. Despite his intelligence and charisma , Augustus's is also somewhat self-centered. He considers the Selcian Nobility to be the smartest people in the people land and dismisses the other kingdoms as uneducated fools who do not understand the nuances of politics.

Perhaps Augustus's greatest personality trait is his ability and willingness to put  stupid people in their place. He's been known to get quite aggressive with the female around his family castle. Those foolish females never seem to know their proper place in the world.



Appearance: Augustus is an attractive young man with chestnut colored hair and blue caring eyes. He is well fed and in good shape. His pale skin is smooth and without imperfection. His posture is perfect and he always stands up straight. A small smile almost always appears on his pink lips.

Biography: Born to Maximilian Von Cloud and Martha Von Cloud , Augustus was raised to be a leader since the day he was born. He has had only the finest tutors since he was three years old and loved to read as a child. Instilled with greatness since birth , Augustus has lived a life of luxury that is benefiting only of a man of his statue and greatness for most of his life. He did however spend a year away from his family's caste to learn what it was like to be commoner when he was sixteen years old. He found the experience enlightening and hopes that it will help make him as wonderful leader as his Heroic father has been. Of course Augustus's life hasn't always been perfect. He's had trials and tribulations just like everybody else. Augustus's has had a particularly bad time in the romance department. Women just don't seem to know their proper place around him and he is constantly reminding them of where they belong. August's life has been relatively uneventful except for the battles Selcian empire seems to be in constantly. While Augustus's has never been on the battlefield he  wishes for peace in his lifetime. Despite the foolishness of the Sahal and Grand Duchy , he hopes they can one day assimilated to civilized society and prosper under Selcian rule.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Goal: While Augustus knows the Sahal are nothing but brainless savages , He is  interested in meeting one. He has never seen one of them in person before. Their lack of education, and hygiene is truly fascinating to him and he wishes to attempt to converse with them. Perhaps through a serious of grunts or finger signs.

Oh God, you had me at this XD You're approved.

Bubbles and Ember are almost finished with their profiles, and I should have a thread for character sheets up relatively soonish. Depending on how hungover I am this weekend, we may be up and running by then at the earliest.

[Ember Star]

I have a feeling Annora and Augustus will not get off to a good start. LOL.

I'm done with my profile. But I'm waiting until tomorrow to post it so I can hear back from Rainbow amf give everything a once over.

[Wajin]

Marissa, if I may I have another little twist to add to the dear Brahn to make his story fit more with where I see Ravthorn being placed, that being close to the South-Eastern border between the Duchy and Sahal

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Sure thing, Ember. Sounds great to me.

Go ahead, Dane. I'll go over it when I can.

[Wajin]

Done :D

[Caela]

After reading that, Moira very MUCH wants Augustus to dare to try and tell her her "Proper" place! Lmao!!!

[xPeachyPuff]

Ohhhh, snap! He seems hilarious and will be a great character to interact with! XD

- Rainbow ♥

[Ember Star]

Name: Annora Évreux
Title: High Queen
Faction: the Kingdom of Sahal
Age: 27
Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

Goal: Believe it or not, Annora actually doesn't have big goals of ruling beyond her own territory of Sahal. Does she want peace? Not exactly. She was born and raised to be a true warrior, and a warrior needs battle. Does she wish to conquer? Kind of, but she also know conquering isn't something immediate, it takes planing. She does wish to see the other factions fall, perhaps tear themselves to pieces or reduce themselves to rubble. The bickering between the two is just annoying anyway. Let them destroy each other and she can come pick up the pieces. But if they can convince her of peace, well, she might consider it. Provided the stakes are properly to her liking. She's not looking forward to it. She sees the nobles of the other factions as having theoretical sticks stuck up their asses.

Personality:
Thunderous tides shall awaken her wrath
Like lightning in the dead of night
Her sword shall be sharp
Her blade tainted with red
Her conquer shall spread through sands of the south

Annora is a true warrior. She is strong, smart, and commanding. Her people respect her because she has proven herself. She often feels the need to prove herself to others. She holds herself and acts with every demeanor of what she is, a warrior queen. She is rough, and can be rude by the others factions standards. But she is by no means dumb. She had studied and strategicalize. She may not have manners and edicate. She may be quick to temper and draw weapons at times. But that does not make her less than them in mind. Only different.


Appearance: Annora stands at five feet seven inches tall. She has long black with bangs that is not especially well kept up with, but  at least looks brushed occasionally. Her eyes are a bright blue-gray, while her skin is usually finely tanned from her time in the sun. Her body is athletic, toned and strong at 130 pounds. Her curves are noticeable, with C-cup breasts, and hips to nicely balance them. She usually dresses, not in queenly garments, but in the clothes of a warrior, and she always has noticeable weapons on her.

Biography: Born the daughter of a high Warload. Annora had her start before she could even walk. He trained his daughter to the upmost mark. With blade and with arrow, she trained. Upon horses she rode into traitorous lands. Her father proclaimed himself the Count of Eredor, Lord of the Steeds. He and his father before him held great power within the land. Her grandfather rose quickly through the ranks. They had a great wealth of horses, of which he was trained greatly in. He gained loyalty, and created a Calvary of sorts. He passed this power, honor, glory, and talent onto his son. His son intended to do the same with his daughter. So, Annora trained and learned and followed her father's lead. Annora was not altogether unkind, nor was her father. They would not have been so good with their horses had they been. But they craved the honor power brought. Yet, they tended to stay fairly stationary. He had been older when he fathered Annora, her mother had died when she was young. He was content in training her to maintain the power that he held.

However, feeling threatened by the Évreux's steady fortress, the High King felt threatened. He wished to take them out, so when she was 20, they were attacked in the dead of night by the High King's forces. Her father was killed, and many of their loyal people and horses. Annora tasted the first flavors of revenge upon her conscious. She lay in wait, she plotted, she learned, she built her following up.

After a year, her house was ready, though not perfect. It was around this time that she first met Kali Charna. She was a mere teenaged girl, stealing from a market Annora happened to be mulling around in. Something about the girl intrigued Annora, so she helped Kali escape. She could've left her on her own, but instead, she took the girl back to her mansion. They became close friends, almost a sisterly bond one could say. Annora taught Kali what she could about the art of war and her plot for revenge. Annora wanted to make sure

That plot would not be put into place until three years ago. Respectively, Annora simply rode up to where the High King lived with a few solders of her own, Kali at her right side, and challenged the King. She knew his temperament would not allow him to say no. She had studied up on him. So, challenge him she did, to a duel at that. He accepted of course, and so they dueled. It was a long and hard duel, but the ending is what mattered. It ended with her beheading the King. This of course created a flurry of anger from the King's own men, but when they moved towards her, they were blocked by her mounted men. With the King's head in hand, she declared herself Queen, and warned that all should respect her as such. Given the criminals code of honor that liked to run through Sahal, most everybody did. She had proven herself strong enough, they would be respect that. Though not everybody did...

Nonetheless, she was now Queen, with Kali at her right hand. She declared the title of Princess upon her, to signify that Kali was not only her friend, but she who was second in command of the country.

[MarissaSeraphOfInsanity]

Ember, you're approved, as are the changes to Dane's character.

A page for character sheets is now up and it'll act as a roll call of sorts to see who's still with us. When you're ready, please post your character sheet to the following thread: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=182105.0

[CurvyKitten]

Peeks my head in to make sure I haven't missed anything~ I haven't missed the start or anything have I?

[doodasaurus]

Why, yes, you have.  ;D

The OOC is here: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=181938.0

The current IC thread is here: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=182266.0

[CurvyKitten]

BAH when did those get posted!

[doodasaurus]

Call it four days ago?  ;D

[CurvyKitten]

NOOO why was I not told sooner? BAH ~runs to catch up and see about getting a post up~ I have to figure out where I can slip my girls into the rp.