The Six Seals - freeform fantasy

[Envious]

"Heed your Oracle." It was a hiss in your ear, waking you from your slumber. The hushed urgency made you feel alert and confused. The remnants of a terrible dream clung to the rim of consciousness, but were fading fast. You sit up, uneasy. What had awoken you? You take a look around to ensure that everything is as it ought to be; it is. You rest your head again, but cannot shake the feeling of desperation in the pit of your stomach. Unable to identify what is wrong, you remain awake for a long time before falling back into a fitful sleep.

When you wake in the morning, you feel displaced. Like you need to leave and head... where? You've had this feeling for months. The anxiety of the forgotten dream has become all-consuming. The pull to move is only getting stronger and you're not sure if you can ignore it any longer. A half-remembered image of a Vault shimmers into consciousness before fading away - it has haunted your dreams for months. You feel shackled like a prisoner and the chain that binds you is relentlessly pulling you towards that dangerous place.

You cannot resist any longer.











Fast Tidbits

New: Seeking a melee/nonmagical character

1. This is a freeform, quest-based adventure set in a generic fantasy landscape.
2. You can create almost any humanoid character that fits within that very broad definition for approval.
3. This is an action/adventure roleplay with opportunity for flirtation and smut, but I don't want an emphasis on romantic relationships.
4. There will be a large focus on combat.
5. Write in third person, past tense.
6. I love, love, love writing with people who are interested in discussing building the world in OOC.
7. You will need to post either OOC or IC at least once a week.


World Information is here in the IC Thread

Throughout this roleplay, your characters will fight their way through corrupted Vaults to retrieve the Six Seals, learn about the origin of the Beast, the true nature of the Godtouched, who the Oracle is, and how she plans to save the world. 

[Arcanist]

Definitely interested. Looking at a rogue type character. Good with exploration and traps. More lucky than skilful a lot of the time. Perhaps he hides his skill with ‘luck’’.

[Cold Heritage]

Hello. This is my declaration of interest. I'm drawn in by the intent to have a free-form fantasy adventure with a focus on the action/adventure elements primarily. It's appealing to me because I don't get that side of games satisfied very much lately.

As for a basic concept: at the basic core, the character is a large, physically powerful warrior. He is the sort of character who does not lack skill, but his primary virtues are in his physical potency and resilience coupled with fighting spirit and willpower. In more specific terms, I imagine him to be the son of two famous warriors who were among the greatest of the previous generation; he exists in the shadow of his parents' reputation and legends - burdened with expectations (real or imagined) born from the fame of sire and dam. Some angst, but not a lot.

[Brittlby]

I’d be interested!

Shooting from the hip in terms of a character, I’d like to play a goblin magician whose main focus is on illusion. She masquerades in the various cities by disguising herself as a child of the appropriate race. Essentially a charming orphan who plays upon the heart strings to get where she needs to be to steal money, trinkets and information.

[Envious]

@Arcanist: That seems like a useful character to have along!

@Cold Heritage: Me either! That's why I thought I'd give it a whirl. It's kind of a mixed bag opening a roleplay during this season - summer is ending, kids are going back to school, holidays are coming up - but I figured why not? It sounds like your character will be a powerhouse! Every group needs a good meat shield. You smash. Bad guy die!

@Brittlby: That concept is such a fun idea =D

@everyone interested: I've had some interest with excellent questions! Here is some more basic info.

Vaults
Everyone knows of the Vaults - they are what hold the Seals! They follow the premise of a classic dungeon. There are many rooms to explore, traps to avoid, puzzles to solve, and loot to gather! With the Seals weakening, monsters have begun to spawn and have been drawn to the Vaults, so our adventurers will need to fight their way through to get to the Seals! All Vaults will be different (probably themed) to add a little variety to the game.

Combat
Combat will be split into two categories: trash mobs, and boss mobs. All fighting will be freeform - you will be able to control your character and puppet the monsters along to write combat fluidly. Instead of ending a post at "I shoot my arrow at it" you can describe "and it pierces the beast in the heart, causing it to fall into a slump" or "and it jumps aside, snarling madly in search of a closer target to maul" or any other action that suits your whim and fancy. Trash mobs will not have a specified health - as a writer, you will determine when/how they die. Boss mobs will have a hit points and you will roll die to determine how much your attack does. You roll a 20, you deal 20 damage. You roll a 1, you deal 1 damage. Nothing fancy or special about it, but it makes things a little more interesting and allows players to know when combat is going to end. Your character takes the HP past 0, your character kills the monster.

The World
I left it intentionally open because great things happen when people have creative licence! If we get a decent group of players, as a team we can discuss fleshing out aspects that will fill out the world. Nothing I say is set in stone. Already, I'm thinking that the Spawn of the beast should have been put into a slumber along with the Beast instead of being killed or going off into hiding. That way, when the Seals begin to weaken, the baddies wake up and start terrorizing people.

Even then, I'm not going to explain the mechanics of being "put into a deep slumber." It's just a convenient plot device and while I want to have a pinch of realism, I'm also okay with creating something with the explanation of "because it's magic."

[Cold Heritage]

I'm okay with "because it's magic." I'm also okay with having the odd "gotcha!" moment here and there because magic is weird and not fully understood, but so long as things are for the most part consistent I don't think it's a particular virtue to having a lot of realism.

[Brittlby]

One super creepy thing you could do for the “slumbering” beasts is that they masqueraded as normal beasts and creatures and “people” (elves, dwarves, goblins, humans) and now as the Beast returns (some quicker and more than others) the tainted descendants are beginning to become twisted and wicked as they awaken. So people in high and low places our characters knew before may be compromised. Heck, even a pc or two may have a little Beast in them.

[Arcanist]

Sounds more interesting by the moment. Does the general populace know about the missing Godtouched or is the knowledge hidden from them? That could open up other factors that could impact on the characters and world.

Will the characters be experienced and somehow linked to the god-touched?

[Envious]

@Brittlby: I like that idea. The evil just seeps into the bones of some people, turning them.

@Arcanist: I had two ideas on the matter of the Godtouched, but their role started to get a little too complex. While those events would definitely help shape our characters, there's a balance between too much and too little detail that I rarely get right  :P

Idea One: Some evil baddy wants the world to come to the brink of extinction via the Beast reawakening so they can pick up the pieces to reign supreme! In effort to do that, they have taken the firstborn Godtouched. Without the sacrifice, the seals weaken. The Beast awakens. It terrorizes the world. Then the evil baddy sacrifices the Godtouched to lock the beast away again. In this scenario, the Godtouched are NPCs/background characters.

Idea Two: We have members of our party who are Godtouched and tired of sacrificing their children and are looking for an alternative way to save the world. These people know that the Beast wasn't always a Beast and are hoping to purify the creature and right the wrongs of their ancestors. In this scenario, the Godtouched are playable characters.

Both have their merits in roleplay world. To be honest, I wasn't going to flesh it out further until we were nearing the halfway point of completing the first Vault and it looked like we were still going to be moving along strong. Those key details would be expanded on in six parts - one secret unlocked with each Vault completed.

I'm leaning towards the missing Godtouched being a secret to the general populace until mid-point in the roleplay. The Oracle will know that something is amiss and calls our characters together to enact idea one or two out.

I'm not sure if I answered your questions very well!

I'm hoping for a roleplay of 6-8 people and will recruit in hopes of hitting that mark.

[Vlexia]

I actually love your styles of games, Envious....as long as the pace feeds my muse I would like to keep stalking your game creations ;P

But yes, expressing interest.

[Brittlby]

Should we put together a background/sheet?

[Arcanist]

Yes it does Envious. Even more interested. Might need to speak to you with regards to bringing my character to life. But definately in

[Envious]

Brittlby, I won't have traditiinal profiles, but I will be posting some questions for you to answer about your characters that will help players to define their characters within the world.

Thank you, Vlexia  :-) I'd love to have you.

I'd be happy to discuss it with you, Arcanist!

[Cold Heritage]

A world element that I had kicking around in my mind was that some followers of the Beast might have the ability through magic to create followers that were not strictly of the Beast but still loyal to them. Through magic, they take a sentient, sapient being - like a human, or whatever species we might end up having like an elf or what have you - and some sort of predatory animal, and combine them into a humanoid amalgamation with traits of both and generally greater than human physical capabilities. In the main, there might be two general types of such creatures: ones that are dim-witted, wantonly destructive, relatively undisciplined, and fodder, made from when you take a dead sentient, sapient being and combine it with a predator animal, and then ones that made from a fully intelligent - at least, as intelligent as the sentient, sapient being used was - capable of reasoning, tactics, disciplined, and leaders, which are made when you take someone living and combine them with a predatory animal. The latter type I imagine would be folks who were seduced into the service of the Beast with promises of power and authority.

And since they are creations of magic and not purely spawn of the Beast, they did not fade away when the Beast was set to slumber. Instead, they fled to the deep forests and high mountains. And there, they multiplied and every so often they would surge from the wildest places to raid and pillage civilized folk.

That might conflict too much with the element of the Seals making the Beast and spawn of the Beast slumber/fade away. Not sure if it's compatible.

[Brittlby]

I don’t know how creepy we’re going in terms of the tone. The seals could be on top of actual “gates” where the Beasts power comes from. The area around two “open” seals in particular could be almost uninhabitable at this point ala Stephen King’s “The Mist” or some other lovecraftian horrorscape. It would make those particularly frightening when we finally had all of the pieces to the puzzle later in the game. Stray “blight towns” may be a more frequent occurrence once the corrupted kill, scare away or convert more of the people in smaller villages.

[Envious]

I love what you guys are thinking!

I hope to have time for a proper response tonight.

[Doomglazer]

Also very intrested in this idea. Would love to play a necromancer he who can control dead and plague and the dark arts of magic. He would be a normal average man. Looking like your everyday guy. But when fighting needs to be done he drains his own soul and with that power he can do horrific stuff.
Or i can play some sort of paladin using the light to bash and to heal people.

[Vlexia]

Tied between a big orcish warrior or a sweet little foreign witch.

[Brittlby]

n_n I’m a sweet witch! ...sort of. n_n we could be besties! Actually that would work with the big Orc too...

[Vlexia]

n_n I’m a sweet witch! ...sort of. n_n we could be besties! Actually that would work with the big Orc too...

Kinda that odd companionship that’s kinda perfect?

[Captain Whitebread]

As soon as I read the premise I was struck with one thought.

With the events that spawned the ritual so far in the past, the sacrifice of the first born is now seen as evil (or the Godtouched could have turned to evil).  It would certainly be seen as distasteful.

Also what happens if the first born dies before being sacrificed?  Or were they killed fresh from the womb?

Is the rank of Godtouched passed down through the female line (easier to convince the mother to allow the sacrifice) or is it the second born who takes the title?

Anyway, my character idea.

A member of a traveling circus.  Firespinner, knife thrower, acrobat and juggler.  Occasional fortune teller (using a candle flame)  NOT a Godtouched.  Has a wandering spirit to begin with but didn't recognize the pull until the circus wanted to go in another direction.

[ff]

Freeform fantasy is my jam, yay. Would probably play a sorceress.

[Envious]

Welcome, Doomglazer, Captain Whitebread, and ff.

I thought I'd have time for a proper reply tonight, but I don't. I hope to respond to character thoughts and story questions tomorrow. I have started creating the main thread and relevant beginning information for the roleplay. I changed some things to streamline and simplify, but nothing that affects what you guys may be thinking for your characters.

[Captain Whitebread]

<rubs hands together>

Excellent.....

[Envious]

Do the godborn represent a particular group of people? So we have a godborn for elves, one for the humans etc?

The Godtouched represent all people, but serve as a religious figure more than a political authority. They are living proof of the Goddess' divine intervention and are revered. Intermarriage is not uncommon, so the Godtouched could be of any race. While their is the direct line, there is also the extended family. Cousins that made more cousins that made more cousins. The further your branch extends, the less prestige there is in being part of the Godtouched line.

Also what happens if the first born dies before being sacrificed?  Or were they killed fresh from the womb?
For the purposes of this roleplay, there has not been a case of this happening.

Is the rank of Godtouched passed down through the female line (easier to convince the mother to allow the sacrifice) or is it the second born who takes the title?
The title of Godtouched is passed down to the second born, as the first is sacrificed. The second born can be male or female - it does not matter. Their firstborn child becomes the next sacrifice and their second born child becomes the next officially titled Godtouched. It is considered an honor to marry into the Godtouched line and sire a sacrifice because you are considered to be the reason the world does not end.

I hope those answers help!

@Doomglazer, could you expand a bit on how you envision the necromancer abilities working in combat? Like, if you release a plague on one of the monsters and the monster attacks one of the party members, does that person now have the plague? You say plague and I think burn it with fire before it spreads.  :P  How do you envision controlling the dead to look? I have no problem with you playing a necromancer. I just want to make sure I know what you mean.

Character "profiles" are inc - starting that next!

[Envious]

Main thread with updated information <- Check here to see some updated info/added world flavor

Character Creation Guidelines

1. You can choose to create any humanoid character that fits within the mold of a generic fantasy adventure.
2. Your character may have some relation to the Godtouched line if you so choose. It does not grant extra abilities/power, but depending on how close you are to the main line, it may give you a little prestige in the world.
3. No matter how your character chooses to present themselves, deep down (for some, maybe deep, deep down) they want to be a part of this adventure to save the world.
4. You are free to make up the Kingdom/Tribe/City/Town/etc. your character comes from. You can make up law organizations, criminal organizations, guilds, holidays, religion, entertainment - whatever you want. I will just fold it into the narrative of the story. I may make some adjustments for consistency.
5. You should be able to post IC or OOC once a week.

Code Select Expand

[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Race:[/b]
[b]Class:[/b] Generic descriptor - archer, mage, warrior etc.
[b]Weapon:[/b]
[b]Abilities:[/b] A brief description of the things your character can do.
[b]Prestige:[/b] Is there something that makes your character recognizable? A wanted poster, a famous performer, Godtouched lineage, best baker?

[b]If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do?[/b]

[b]If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be?[/b]

[b]What is the one thing your character wants most in the world?[/b]

[b]Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character?[/b]
Due to that wanted poster, personal responsibilities, bad choices, or for the lols?





Name: Cleric Selador
Race: Human, though it is suspected that there is a little Elf in there somewhere
Class: Healer
Weapon: Knife
Abilities: She has the ability to heal minor wounds, purify common poisons, create a protective barrier, and smite with a holy fire.
Prestige: As a Cleric, she will often be asked to heal those in need.

If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do?
It would allow her to teleport.

If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be?
A shield that would allow her to protect those who needed it.

What is the one thing your character wants most in the world?
To become Oracle and hear the voice of the Goddess.

Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character?
People travel to Clerics for healing, not the other way around. It is rare to see a traveling Cleric and their services are extremely valuable. She may be asked to perform a healing where refusal is not an option.

[Doomglazer]

@Doomglazer, could you expand a bit on how you envision the necromancer abilities working in combat? Like, if you release a plague on one of the monsters and the monster attacks one of the party members, does that person now have the plague? You say plague and I think burn it with fire before it spreads.  :P  How do you envision controlling the dead to look? I have no problem with you playing a necromancer. I just want to make sure I know what you mean.

The plague will work in a way that i first need a  drop of skin or blood or hair so i can "tell"my plague to only attack that strain. So if the plagued one touches somebody else nothing will happen. And only the creature i have a strain from will get affected.  Controlling the dead will be via mind control they will only listen to me. So even when my mouth is sealed i can still control the undead.

[Brittlby]

Name: Hobnail Snatchpastry
Race: Goblin (Cuckoo)
Class: Rogue Illusionist
Weapon: Magic Rope
Abilities: She is a confidence trickster, spy and thief who uses illusions to mask her appearance and confuse enemies.

Prestige: Amongst the wealthy elite, one of Hobby’s many thief identities is spoken of in hushed tones. They call her the “Epicurean”, for her habit of stealing things less for their monetary value and more for their beauty or edibility. Wine collectors and rare game gourmets fear her greatly. 

Additionally, the noble Renard Family has a standing bounty on her head or for any information, as Hobby was switched with their daughter from the age of three to nineteen, when she was discovered.

If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do?

Most likely a scryers tool that would allow her to spy from the comfort of her own home or a bauble that could allow her to pass through walls.

If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be?

Hobby doesn’t like to get her hands dirty in a fight and so likely it would be a golem or familiar who could handle physical matters for her.

What is the one thing your character wants most in the world?

To know who she really is and to win back the love of her “adopted” family.

Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character?

Likely an angry gourmet may have an expensive score to settle and may try to bring her out of seclusion by using some rare delicacy as bait.

Or the Renard family and their personal army of bounty hunters may find clues of her here and there which would bring them running.

(One option, you can take it or leave it if it doesn’t mesh, is that Claudette Renard, the child Hobby was switched with is one of the missing sacrifice children of the God Touched. Likely taken hostage by the Goblin Kingdom, no ransom was ever called for... And Hobby has no affiliation with them since they used her as a child decoy. They only discovered her identity when it came time to sacrifice her.)

[Captain Whitebread]

Name: Cujo
Race: Human
Class: Juggler/Acrobat
Weapon:Knife or throwing knife (although he is also skilled with whips)
Abilities: Endurance - Cujo can (and has) danced for days at a time.  He is physically and emotionally exhausted at the end of it and will sleep for days afterwards but while awake he can perform incredible feats of endurance (digging or cutting wood for hours without rest).  It is often hard to get him to stop, as if he were in some form of trance.

Fireplay -Cujo has learned to play with fire and not get burned.  He has no greater resistance than the next man but his understanding of how the fire works makes it appear that he is immune to the flames.  He can also use it therapeutically, to help accelerate healing.

Cold Reading - Cujo can read small ticks and changes in expression and uses those to make his fortune telling more accurate.  When called upon he 'reads' fortunes in a candle flame.  He does not like doing this because he knows he has no true ability to foretell the future and feels he is cheating people.

Juggling - Cujo can juggle not just flaming torches but also knives and other objects that can be thrown with devastating accuracy.  He has any number of props to use in his fire act, fans, whips even cages on the ends of chains.  His maximum number of objects that he can juggle is 6 or 7 (different techniques for odd or even numbers).  He's good enough to catch most things that are thrown at him but catching an arrow is well beyond his abilities.  He lives in hope, however.  He's also skilled at contact juggling.

Acrobat/Tumbler - Cujo is a skilled tumbler and acrobat, although it is not his specialty. 

Pyromancy - Cujo has a small amount of magical talent, allowing him to create and manipulate fire.  He cannot throw fireballs (yet) but can create balls of fire than he can throw (as long as he does it quickly).

Prestige: Cujo has limited fame as a performer but he's not likely to be recognized unless he is in costume

If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do? It would be a pair of gloves that allow him to handle fire without being burned (or maybe let him catch arrows)

If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be? A flamethrower

What is the one thing your character wants most in the world? Given a choice between developing his fire magic or being able to catch an arrow, Cujo would probably want to catch an arrow.

Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character? If Cujo heard that one of his old circus friends was murdered, he would cross flaming mountains or oceans of fire to find the killer.

[Doomglazer]

The first picture is his normal self when he is not in combat, strolling the city. The second one is his battle mode

Name: Axel
Race: Human
Class: Necromancer
Weapon: 2 handed staff
Abilities:

Casting: He can inflict plagues onto creatures but he first has to have a sample of it before the plagues work on the creature

Drain life: the more life he drains and stores in his staff the higher the rank of summons he can do

Summon: summon various ranks of undead to fight for him

Healing: can use the the drained life in his staff to heal and lift curses



Prestige: Axel is just your average Joe, he doesn't stand out in a crowd or he isn't famous for anything. The only thing that would draw some attention is the scar in his face

If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do? It would be the Talisman of Zul'Amandiel, rumor has it, that if the person gets attack while wearing this Talisman a bone armor will be formed around the wearers body to protect him from the incoming blows to reduce physical and magic damage

If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be? It would be the war scythe Massacre, Last Hope Of The Ancients. The wielder of this scythe would have the power to summon the 4 horseman  of the apocalypse. Each having a unique ability. But it would require an enormous amount of life force and the longer the summon lasts the more sanity the wielder will lose upon the point of collapsing and falling into a living nightmare that could last for several hours.

What is the one thing your character wants most in the world? To stop having nightmares every time he closes his eyes

Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character?Rumor goes around that in a far away land there is a witch that can take away your nightmares. If he stumbles upon a hunt where he could find her he would go after it.

[Envious]

Hi everyone, it's looking great!

I'm going to wait for a few more profiles to roll in before I open the IC thread.

[Envious]

Name: Hobnail Snatchpastry

Snatchpastry  ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

[ff]

Hi everyone, it's looking great!

I'm going to wait for a few more profiles to roll in before I open the IC thread.

OK I'll try to  make an actual char profile this weekend!

Full disclosure - I intend to repurpose a char sheet I made for a fantasy RP awhile back that never got started. So here's that sheet....but I probably need to go over some of the 'lore' info specific to this thread so I can fit it into this setting better (and format it the same way as the others).

But this will give a general idea of the sort of char I am thinking

(EDIT: Deleted, see sheet in post later down)

[Arcanist]

Name: Alain Dumas
Race: Human
Class: Rogue/ Archeologist (Seeker of the Lost)
Weapon: Warhammer
Abilities:
Sage: Alain is a fountain of knowledge in the areas of Archaeology, especially ancient,  crafting and Engineering, with a special fondness for traps. He also has knowledge of the magic of the ancients. Although, not a mage himself, he uses his knowledge in conjunction with his other specialties to bypass, disarm, delay, destroy, find the weakness of, nudge or any other actions that would lead to a successful outcome.

Lucky/instinctive: Alain is extremely lucky, either that or his skills and knowledge has become so intertwined that it has become almost instinctual to him and seems like luck. For example, leaning on the right brick to open a secret passage or happening to be standing on the only safe flagstone.

Rogue Abilities: Alain is highly proficient in stealth, disarming and arming mechanisms such as traps, hidden doors, etc. and well being in the right place at the right time or is it the other way around.

Warhammer: Alain is quite proficient with his Warhammer. A weapon and tool that he goes nowhere without.

Prestige: Is the third son of the second born of House Dumas and, at least to him hopefully far enough away to hold anything of importance. Unlike his older siblings, his interest lay elsewhere. One of the youngest sage employed by the High College of Inverness, if he is not in class teaching his students the History of the Ancient World, he would be at a dig site uncovering its secrets.

If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do?: It would be a magical vest that protects him from harm and the elements, but more importantly, he would be able to produce any items he would need in his adventures. These items would be anything that can be imagined, such as thieves tools, a climbing pole, a sextant, or even a boat for 6.

If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be? A Warhammer that is both a weapon and a tool. It could also change its shape and mass via its wielder's thought. For example, it could lengthen or shorten its half or increase the size or mass of the main business end.

What is the one thing your character wants most in the world? The usual answer of World Peace so that he can be left alone to pursue the things he loves.

Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character?
Perhaps a family matter has put him in a situation that needed him to take care off or the discovery of artifacts that contradict currently held beliefs or even just the discovery of new artifacts.

[Envious]

Profiles are looking good!

Here's a question for your guys - do you want to start out exploring the Godtouched Temple, or be thrown right into a... ruckus?

[Captain Whitebread]

Nothing brings people together like a ruckus.

[Aethyrium]

::Steps in:: Is this game still looking for additional characters? I am intrigued by its concept.

[Envious]

Yes! Feel free to drop a character in - we're starting soon =]

[Aethyrium]

Name: Rinoa
Race: Elf
Class: Druid
Weapon: Fighting Claws
Abilities: Beastshape (transforming into natural animals), Plant Manipulation (growing, empowering, altering, and controlling plant matter), Beast Speech (talking to and "controlling" animals), Elemental Manipulation (the ability to shape, create, and utilize the standard elements)

Prestige: Rinoa is a rare elfkin, recognizably so. The land from which she comes is the heart of the world, the seat of The World Tree; the so called cradle of the world, from which life sprung and gets the energy to continue to flourish. The sacred lands were entrusted to her people eons ago, and in the forest they have stayed since those times. What could drive one of them out into the world...

If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do?
A crystal sphere that could replace the eye she lost, granting her magical sight greater than any natural sight, able to gaze beyond the veil of life and death, pierce through illusions, to see distant places, even gaze upon other worlds.

If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be?
A staff fashioned in the most ancient of times from wood naturally fallen from the World Tree that would enhance her drudic magics by allowing her to tap into the well of power of the world itself.

What is the one thing your character wants most in the world?
To lift the blight that now consumes her home, and root out the creatures that lay siege to the World Tree.

Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character?
Rinoa comes from an ancient land filled with lost knowledge and power, that others might be interested in learning about - or taking. Rinoa's kind don't exist outside the world, so she has that exotic element going for her as well. Druidism itself is a rare gift, with powers that could change economy's if used to alter the natural balance of location to promote abundant and quick harvests.

[Arcanist]

Ruckus always good

[Envious]

It's bee a busy couple of days for me! I'll post ooc and open main thread tomorrow! Welcome, Aethyrium.

[Envious]

Heyo, everyone! I will send out a PM to everyone who showed interest in this thread sometime this week to ask if they are still interested in playing.

Check out the OOC to get the header for your posts! https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=291770.0

The main thread is here: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=291769.0

[ff]

OK official char submisssion

Name: Gwendolyn an Montlac
Race: Human
Class: Sorceress
Weapon: Mostly, just magic. Carries a few daggers, a short sword, a small crossbow, and a small rune-etched axe from her native Skellige which in truth she usually uses for wood when trekking. She has modest skill at arms at best, and thinks of physical weapons primarily as deterrents against pickpockets, belligerent lusty tavern drunkards, alleyway molesters, and the like.
Abilities: Herbalism, Healing, Magical Knowledge. Some sailing and ropework knowledge. Modest experience with physical weapons. Herbalistic knowledge of brewing potions and decoctions, and the foraging or growing of ingredients for such. Nonmagical and magical healing knowledge, including wound binding, bone setting, and and midwifery. Magical arts, including granting some protection and regeneration of nearby allies, levitative flight of self and allies within arm’s length, telepathy. Manipulation of water, a good deal of healing magic, and some channeling of ice and electricity (but to a much lesser extent than the best battle-sorceresses). Has an attunement to the presence of nearby life forces and intuition of their health and need and healing. Is sometimes able to soothe beasts, intuit their instincts or emotional states, mollify their aggression, or guide them in useful ways such as coaxing a wild dog to sniff out a trail. Is not above using mind magic (think Jedi mind trick level) to try to charm or glean information from otherpeople, which can socially backfire when sensed by stronger-minded would-be targets.
Prestige: Infamous in her native land due to be being part of a failed 'soft coup' (see Backstory below), not well known outside it except among circles of other sorceresses and itches.

If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do? Read the thoughts of others

If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be? a Thor-style throwing axe that returns when thrown and can be 'guided' in fancy aerial patterns in its flight

What is the one thing your character wants most in the world? Further skill in magic

Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character? Some vendetta with the aristrocrats of her homeland who were on the other side of her power struggles, and/or some quest for an artifact/book/etc. that would further develop her powers

Backstory: Gwendolyn hails from one of the Skellige’s few non-coastal settlements, Rogne, a mountain village near the center of its largest isle, Ard Skellig. She was born to loving but unambitious parents, her father a hunter and her mother a gardener and seamstress. Gwendolyn took quickly to thirsty absorption of knowledge, and learned what she might from such as village artisans and the druids and priestesses. To the latter, Gwendolyn thought for a time to devote her life, and was indeed a novice priestess of Freya, the Skelligan goddess of fertility and love and beauty. There she might well lived out her life, perhaps becoming a wife and mother, had her thirst for knowledge been more easily slaked. She desired ever the knowledge of the revered druids of Skellige, who were always selective with the taking on of acolytes, and all but impossibly opaque to womenfolk. Gwendolyn earned herself some measure of sacrilegious trouble when she stubbornly sought to learn all their secrets and magics.

She was on the verge of being exiled or worse, when larger political winds blew in her favor. There came the rare ascension of a princess, Cerys an Craite, to the throne of Skellige. Gwendolyn guessed this an opportunity. What knowledge of herbs and healing and magic she did have as a priestess more than sufficed to get her taken on as one of the new queen’s attendants. She worked as handmaiden, herbalist, and healer to the court, and likely would be midwife should the queen bear any children. Gwendolyn, when she subtly could, made suggestions to Cerys that perhaps declaring the druids ought take on women would bolster Cerys’s own claim as queen, by warming the populace to such notions in general. In her heart, Gwendolyn was ambitious, and saw herself an eventual place as chief druid and advisor to the queen, much like the role the elderly archdruid Mousesack had played to the island and its last king, Cerys’s late father.

Though Cerys’s ear proved tentatively receptive, Gwendolyn in other ways overplayed her hand. The other druids smelled out an ecclesiastical coup in the form of Gwendolyn and some of the other priestesses of Freya; they drummed up noise against her from among the noblemen and war captains. They circulated rumors that, out of black magic fed lusty ambition, Gwendolyn had been warming not only the queen’s ear, but also her bed. Admittedly, these rumors may have had some truth.

Cerys, fearful of discord and her own somewhat tenuous throne, privately suggested that Gwendolyn remove herself to the mainland for a time. Perhaps she might gain entry at the Lodge of Sorceresses, or at least learn for a time of magics and politics in ways she might not on Skellige, and perhaps eventually return with the power to back up her ambitions, and when the populace had grown more used to having a queen. 

This suited Gwendolyn just fine, for the prospect of the knowledge of sorceresses had more appeal than druidic politics, and she desired to see the wider world. And in truth she was becoming more than a little worried of being formally excommunicated by the druids and priestesses, or even murdered in her sleep.

So, she sailed with the tide to the mainland. Once she was able to gain attention of sorceresses, her existing magical knowledge allowed her to keep it. The deep delving into lore and magic she took to well, but she found the catty politics of sorceresses, and those of mainland kingdoms, to be even worse than the feuds back home! This time, Gwendolyn tried to keep her head down, avoid power struggles, and merely look to after her own knowledge and power and safety. In the aftermath of mainland war, there were many to be healed, of wounds from prior battles or free-roaming bandits and monsters, or of the famine-borne ailments that followed war. Otherwise, she tried to give the political fallout of the recent struggles a wide berth, and not to take sides.

[Envious]

ff, feel free to join the main thread! No need to crosspost profiles. I will ask that you tweak your magical abilities some and I will give some further guidance when I'm off work. Nothing big, but I wanted to say sooner rather than later.

[Envious]

Phew! Long day.

ff, I think my trouble is that I don't know what a witcher is or what their signs do. I started the game, but never had time to finish it  :P I'm also uncertain what you mean by remote communication.

I have no questions about the nonmagical abilities. The magical abilities of water, healing, ice, electricity, the attunement to life forces, soothing/mollifying/guiding beasts are fine.

I would prefer that Gwendolyn not have the ability to scry, as the Oracle will perform that function for this roleplay. I would also ask that she not be able to teleport or have telekinetic manipulation abilities.

[Levi]

Ok Envious baby steps but as I said in pm I am interested. Im gonna take a look at the submitted profiles and then go from there. Is there any type of character you need specifically?

[LilyOfTheGalley]

Name: Chloellë Huntinghawk
Race: Elf (high elf variant)
Class: Warrior
Weapon: Sabre; twin curved daggers
Abilities: Chloellë is an accomplished fighter with a range of weapons, but particularly skilled with bladed weapons. She normally fences with her sabre in open combat, and uses her dagger in close quarters such as confined dungeons or sneak attacks. She is highly athletic, with strong endurance, great running speed, and fantastic climbing ability, being almost supernaturally light-footed even without the aid of her climbing rope. She has some affinity for nature having spent time living in bandit camps in the deep forest, capable of rudimentary communication with beasts of the wild, and well practised in fieldcraft such as foraging, survival, and camouflage. She is fluent in numerous languages, although she does not always reveal this to those speaking in her presence. Beyond her innate racial powers (such as excellent vision and resistance to certain magics) she is not particularly magically inclined; a spell to cast light from a blade she holds is about the limit of her casting ability.
Prestige: Chloellë is a lieutenant in a mildly notorious bandit crew; it’s unlikely anyone in the party would directly recognise her as such, but they could come across those she’s previously robbed or done ill to.
If your character found a magical artifact, what would it do? It would play music of otherworldly beauty.
If your character found a powerful weapon, what would it be? Some kind of bladed weapon, no doubt. Although Chloellë dreams of powerful swords, a dagger might be a truer reflection of her character.
What is the one thing your character wants most in the world? Long past vengeance for her family, Chloellë is driven on by a powerful desire to bring down the Guild of Merchants.
Is there an interesting side-quest we might be pulled into due to your character? Chloellë’s family drowned at sea after a merchant cut corners on the safety of his ship to try to complete a trade ahead of schedule. Ever since she has developed a strong dislike of merchants and joined a bandit crew specifically to raid convoys of the Guild of Merchants, whom she sees as usurers who use other people for the sake of gold. Chloellë’s bandit crew could come looking for her, or she could encounter those she’s wronged.

[Envious]

Welcome, Lily! Feel free to join the OOC and IC thread and begin posting.

Levi, I will leave it open to you! Feel free to PM me any time if you have questions or want to talk out a character idea.

[ff]

Phew! Long day.

ff, I think my trouble is that I don't know what a witcher is or what their signs do. I started the game, but never had time to finish it  :P I'm also uncertain what you mean by remote communication.

I have no questions about the nonmagical abilities. The magical abilities of water, healing, ice, electricity, the attunement to life forces, soothing/mollifying/guiding beasts are fine.

I would prefer that Gwendolyn not have the ability to scry, as the Oracle will perform that function for this roleplay. I would also ask that she not be able to teleport or have telekinetic manipulation abilities.

OK I've cut those abilities and the explicit Witcher / Witcher signs reference

[Levi]

Welcome, Lily! Feel free to join the OOC and IC thread and begin posting.

Levi, I will leave it open to you! Feel free to PM me any time if you have questions or want to talk out a character idea.

Thank you, I will certainly do so.

[Envious]

Thank you, ff!

[Envious]

Seeking more heroes to save the world =]