~Monsterhearts: The Correctional Academy for Damaged Youths~

[Blythe]

I'd love to shed Unresolved Trauma but the Monsterheart pdf says under Ghost Moves that it is a given and inescapable. If that could be changed, I'd be thrilled.

Argh, forgot about that.

Hmm. We'll have to work on some ways Alice can conceivably blame others in that case. Darn. I think an easier way to go about that is to focus on where it says "project the blame and the trauma of your death" part. I think the operative words would be 'project' and 'trauma.' Perhaps it would be easier to fixate on Alice feeling bitter when she sees something that simply reminds her of her death or the life she misses...and then 'blames' another person for reminding her or making her feel bad? It's a bit of an open interpretation of Unresolved Trauma, but I also think it's one that remains true to its intent.

As for remains--there's no set hard-and-fast rules about them for ghosts. Personally, I would say that Alice's remains were simply never recovered (which also leaves a very nice plothook for later should the character be accepted).

[Angie]

Argh, forgot about that.

Hmm. We'll have to work on some ways Alice can conceivably blame others in that case. Darn. I think an easier way to go about that is to focus on where it says "project the blame and the trauma of your death" part. I think the operative words would be 'project' and 'trauma.' Perhaps it would be easier to fixate on Alice feeling bitter when she sees something that simply reminds her of her death or the life she misses...and then 'blames' another person for reminding her or making her feel bad? It's a bit of an open interpretation of Unresolved Trauma, but I also think it's one that remains true to its intent.

As for remains--there's no set hard-and-fast rules about them for ghosts. Personally, I would say that Alice's remains were simply never recovered (which also leaves a very nice plothook for later should the character be accepted).

Having the Sin-Eaters book on hand from World of Darkness might be useful since we have a Ghost around.

Honestly a lot of WoD stuff would be pretty easy to draw inspiration from.

[Nadir]

If it helps, my dude will have the Temptation thing, and  have been expelled for being a drug dealer, and I could have him linked to some overdose deaths.

[Yukina]

If it helps, my dude will have the Temptation thing, and  have been expelled for being a drug dealer, and I could have him linked to some overdose deaths.

Is he a reckless driver?

[wander]

So we have two female Ghosts potentially? That's interesting...

Also I'm excited to see a Serpentine... I only have the corebook, so I'm always interested to see what supplemental Skins can do. :)

[Blythe]

So we have two female Ghosts potentially? That's interesting...

Also I'm excited to see a Serpentine... I only have the corebook, so I'm always interested to see what supplemental Skins can do. :)

Serpentine is available for free by the publishers legally as a pdf--it's linked in the first post of this thread if you want to take a look-see at what its like.

[wander]

Ooh, that's a pretty awesome Skin! ^^

If another game in the future comes up, I may go for that! :)

[Angie]

Name: Vanessa Bozard
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Skin: Witch
Background: The Bozard family is an old Southern family, or at least, they have quite a few roots down that way. However, after being on the losing side of the Civil War, Vanessa's ancestors decided to brave the Oregon Trail, and ended up being one of the few families who made it to the Pacific Coast. They ended up settling near to what would become modern day Portland.

The Bozards always had a slight air of mystery about them. They seemed to be luckier then others-few hardships faced the family, and what few did rear their ugly heads were easily handled. Some spoke of trafficking with demons, but they were dismissed. Most simply thought the Bozards had all the luck-and to the family's credit, they were more then happy to share their bounty with those who were less fortunate.

Time went by. World Wars-two of them-happened. Vanessa's grandfather was heavily wounded in the Pacific Theater, being wheelchair bound for the rest of his life. As such, her grandmother took charge of keeping things running-getting money rolling in and raising the pair's young child, Henry Bozard. No one's quite sure how it happened-even if you asked Henry, he wouldn't know how to answer-but Henry grew a deep resentment of his parents, which slowly morphed into a rampant misogynistic streak.

Vanessa is the firstborn child of Henry and Samantha Bozard. Henry wanted a son, however, and shortly after Vanessa's birth, her grandfather died. He's never said it aloud, but for some insane reason (then again, hate is never exactly sane), Henry blames Vanessa and Samantha for the death of his father.

With Henry being a raging (insert swear of your choice here) and Samantha being too passive and timid to do anything to stop him, it's no surprise Vanessa grew closer to her grandmother, Veronica Bozard. Veronica is notable for being one of the only women Henry is afraid of-when she tells him to sit down and shut up, he does. "I didn't raise no He-Man-Woman-Hater!" She would say. "Don't know what got into that boy."

As Vanessa grew into her teenage years, fights with her father became all too common. Whenever Veronica would hear of such fights, she would sigh and wonder where it all went wrong. She spent more time with her grandmother, helping her out around the house...until one day, she found an old book in the attic.

In every story, the hero's problems begin when they find a mysterious artifact. Vanessa had read them all. She knew the book would be trouble. But she opened it...she read it...she realized the power within the book...She tried casting a spell, and seemingly succeeded when her grandmother entered behind her. "And just what are you doing, missy?" She tried to lie, and found she could not. "I...was casting a spell?"

"Oh lord in heaven..." Veronica said, taking the book from Vanessa's hands. "Seems you've stumbled upon a few old memories of mine." "You wrote that book?" "And found out magic was more trouble then it was worth! Your grandfather introduced me to it...his mother was a Witch herself, you see. But I just...after the war, I just couldn't bring myself to use that kind of power anymore. The way my head was back then, I felt that if I tried anything, it would blow me to pieces, and I couldn't do that. Some days I wonder if things might have been different if I had, or if I had taught Henry a few tricks. Some days I'm glad I didn't!" She laughed.

"Can I..." "You want to try and learn it?" Veronica said. "On a few very big conditions, dearie. Rule 1-if I ever hear about you using this power to hurt people without a damn good reason, I'll put you to the torch myself. This-" She tapped the book "-is not a toy. Yank on the fabric of reality a little too much, you'll find yourself in a world of hurt." Vanessa agreed, and so began her lessons...

A few years later, after Vanessa almost violated the rules a few times, and using hexes to mess with her father repeatedly, her father decided to have her shipped off to the wonderful Correctional Academy for Damaged Youths. Veronica, while disappointed in Vanessa for abusing her power, gave the lady a pass for using it on Henry. "He needs to be knocked down a few pegs...now, you're gonna be on your own for a while. But remember what I told you-tool, not toy. You hold a destructive force in your hands. Make sure it's not turned on you."

And now she's here at the Academy, her head full of secrets both mundane and mystical. She's realizing just how careless people are with things that link to them, and she's not going to resist temptation much longer...

Stats: Hot -1, Cold 1, Volatile -1, Dark 2

Moves: Sympathetic Links, Hexes, Transgressive Magic
Hexes: Ring of Lies, Binding

Other: Tends to have a rather playful look in her eyes, especially when she's dealing with magic.
Use of sympathetic links in spell casting involves wrapping said link in various herbs and setting shit on fire! Additionally, her knowledge of herbs means her room smells FANTASTIC!

[Blythe]

I quite like Vanessa, and the backstory and family with the Bozards is great here (and very plothook-rich, especially with the grandmother Veronica, because the 'rules' she gave make for great RPing potential, and her father Henry!). The only thing I'd ask you is to change is her age--please bump it to 18, as I'm specifically looking for 18 year old characters in their senior year.

[Angie]

I quite like Vanessa, and the backstory and family with the Bozards is great here (and very plothook-rich, especially with the grandmother Veronica, because the 'rules' she gave make for great RPing potential, and her father Henry!). The only thing I'd ask you is to change is her age--please bump it to 18, as I'm specifically looking for 18 year old characters in their senior year.

Done. Vanessa has always been 18 and we have always been at war with Eastasia

I didn't mention them because I felt doing so would subtract from the backstory, but she can have brothers/sisters. Obviously Henry would favor any brothers. Feel free to throw them in if you like, because I'm well aware of the rule: To a player, family is character background. To a GM, family is character blackmail.

[Yukina]

Seeing that there's a player who I know focuses in f/f, I'm changing my interest to full. :)

[croiduire]

Argh, forgot about that.

Hmm. We'll have to work on some ways Alice can conceivably blame others in that case. Darn. I think an easier way to go about that is to focus on where it says "project the blame and the trauma of your death" part. I think the operative words would be 'project' and 'trauma.' Perhaps it would be easier to fixate on Alice feeling bitter when she sees something that simply reminds her of her death or the life she misses...and then 'blames' another person for reminding her or making her feel bad? It's a bit of an open interpretation of Unresolved Trauma, but I also think it's one that remains true to its intent.

As for remains--there's no set hard-and-fast rules about them for ghosts. Personally, I would say that Alice's remains were simply never recovered (which also leaves a very nice plothook for later should the character be accepted).

I just had another thought that, despite the skin, might not be game breaking. What if she did survive? What if she were a Chosen, but has no bloody clue, or even the hint of a glimmer of a clue, that's what she really is? Right now, for rp purposes she is just a sad, haunted, guilt-ridden young woman yearning for all she lost. What if, somewhere along the way (perhaps as an endgame detail as you tie up loose *ahem* Strings), she learns some Horrible Truth about the crash (maybe the family was purposefully murdered by a rival?) that only then (post-game) inflames and empowers her? Would it make sense, and enhance the game, for her to be a Chosen-in-Waiting?

[Blythe]

I just had another thought that, despite the skin, might not be game breaking. What if she did survive? What if she were a Chosen, but has no bloody clue, or even the hint of a glimmer of a clue, that's what she really is? Right now, for rp purposes she is just a sad, haunted, guilt-ridden young woman yearning for all she lost. What if, somewhere along the way (perhaps as an endgame detail as you tie up loose *ahem* Strings), she learns some Horrible Truth about the crash (maybe the family was purposefully murdered by a rival?) that only then (post-game) inflames and empowers her? Would it make sense, and enhance the game, for her to be a Chosen-in-Waiting?

The Chosen is a skin I'd ideally rather not allow; it changes the game's tone significantly, because the Skin is based around monster-hunting, and all the other PCs (unless someone plays The Mortal) are monsters. I'd also rather not try to mix the styles of Ghost and Chosen quite like that.

[FarFetched]

I really like the Hemlock-Grove style of this system, and was especially curious about how the "True Love" mechanic of the Mortal worked. Are they chosen at the beginning of the game? Do I need permission from another player to pick a "True Love" in my backstory? Should I Anyways?

I was having a lot of fun writing a Butler character in another RP recently. When I read this, I thought about how hilarious it would be to have a character not unlike Jeeves from "Jeeves and Wooster" being thrown into a high school environment, tasked to look after a rather wealthy teenager (Marked as their "True Love") on the behalf of their parents.

Would that work or am I getting the entirely wrong idea about this game?

[wander]

True Loves are picked before the game starts, generally there is some player discussion about that beforehand. Generally you'd pick someone and that person will either say yay or nay to it until you're set with one. Part of the fun of the Mortal is switching love to someone more suitable later anyways, I find.

Of course, I'm not the GM so best wait to see what Sherlock thinks on all that. :)

[croiduire]

The Chosen is a skin I'd ideally rather not allow; it changes the game's tone significantly, because the Skin is based around monster-hunting, and all the other PCs (unless someone plays The Mortal) are monsters. I'd also rather not try to mix the styles of Ghost and Chosen quite like that.

That's fair--you know the game mechanics, I don't, and I definitely don't want fellow PCs as adversaries. Also, the Ghost skin really does feel like a better fit overall; I was just looking for work-arounds.

I was reading the description again. "Whenever you project the blame and trauma of your death onto your current situation, roll with dark." Not any specific people, but the situation. Could that mean when Alice starts in on a brooding, self-loathing episode, the blame is not so much directed at any specific person, but is more a thing, a supernaturally tangible miasma that envelops her like a shroud and can contaminate those who come too near, infecting them with the same guilt/shame/self-blame/anguish she is feeling?

[Blythe]

I really like the Hemlock-Grove style of this system, and was especially curious about how the "True Love" mechanic of the Mortal worked. Are they chosen at the beginning of the game? Do I need permission from another player to pick a "True Love" in my backstory? Should I Anyways?

I was having a lot of fun writing a Butler character in another RP recently. When I read this, I thought about how hilarious it would be to have a character not unlike Jeeves from "Jeeves and Wooster" being thrown into a high school environment, tasked to look after a rather wealthy teenager (Marked as their "True Love") on the behalf of their parents.

Would that work or am I getting the entirely wrong idea about this game?

The fun thing about the Mortal's True Love aspect is that...it's not necessarily reciprocated. It can be completely unrequited love. It's possible for the Mortal to switch their love interest as well at a cost during gameplay.

It'd probably be a good idea to ask a player first before declaring their character your character's True Love--and it does need to be another player's character for the Mortal skin to function as intended. It would be chosen before any in-character posting threads would be up, but after I have approved character concepts.

As far as the butler concept--all the player characters need to be seniors in high school who are 18 or 19, so any concepts older or straying from that would not really work.

That's fair--you know the game mechanics, I don't, and I definitely don't want fellow PCs as adversaries. Also, the Ghost skin really does feel like a better fit overall; I was just looking for work-arounds.

I was reading the description again. "Whenever you project the blame and trauma of your death onto your current situation, roll with dark." Not any specific people, but the situation. Could that mean when Alice starts in on a brooding, self-loathing episode, the blame is not so much directed at any specific person, but is more a thing, a supernaturally tangible miasma that envelops her like a shroud and can contaminate those who come too near, infecting them with the same guilt/shame/self-blame/anguish she is feeling?

If it affects her character actions and brings others down when they talk to her, I would say yes. Mostly the point of this power is to tie others into Alice's tragedy as a Ghost, so if it spreads the gloom around, I think it stays true to the power's intent.

It would mean that 'blamed' condition the power applies would be more of a "feeling responsible that [PC name] cannot help Alice right now" sort of thing, which could work nicely.

[Nadir]

* This game is LGBTQA friendly,

Curious minds must know - if a character is asexual and rather on the feral side, would it be possible for any turn on rolls to bring a different kind of lust out?

[Blythe]

Curious minds must know - if a character is asexual and rather on the feral side, would it be possible for any turn on rolls to bring a different kind of lust out?

Yes, I think I'd allow that, because I feel it would be sensible for an ace character to respond and interest certainly garnered, but it makes sense for an ace character to potentially express interest in different ways. Plus, since I'd like players to ask before using Turn On on another player, I think this allows some flexibility here.

[Nadir]

Fantastic ^_^

[croiduire]

It would mean that 'blamed' condition the power applies would be more of a "feeling responsible that [PC name] cannot help Alice right now" sort of thing, which could work nicely.

Oh, excellent! Thank you.

[Sparrowhawke]

I am eyeing the ghoul skin, just reading through things to get a better idea of the system and the world~

[Blythe]

I am eyeing the ghoul skin, just reading through things to get a better idea of the system and the world~

Looking forward to seeing what concept you come up with for a concept!




As a note: As it stands, the current interest seems to be at about 6/7 people. I hypothetically could run this with six, and it'd give us an even number (yay everyone gets a fellow PC roommate in some manner!), but it's a tad larger than I would have expected. It might make my replies less prompt than they otherwise could be--player input on that would be appreciated.

I absolutely cannot have more than 6, though, because of how Monsterhearts's Strings work for character creation. Anything over 6 is just something I don't want to try to juggle.

[Sparrowhawke]

Name: Caim Reaver

Gender: Male

Age:

Background: Caim was raised by a single father, who never could quite get over the fact that he had a kid dumped on him by the mother, in a low-income home. Actual parenting was scarce, but at least the man largely kept them fed (even if most of the money did go to alcohol instead), and got Caim into school. With the emotional distance, the father barely noticed when Caim started acting out, probably because by and large he did it away from home. When he hit high school, he began joining in on some of the worse activities, though none as much as the fight club going on under the school's nose. It was here that he met his untimely end, when a fight between himself and another, obstinate and arrogant student broke out. With neither of them willing to back down, it ended with Caim's death, and his opponent, along with the rest of the club who were there at the time, panicked. Instead of being taken to hospital, or the police being called, they tried to dump his body.

Given that it wasn't uncommon for him to disappear for days at a time, his father never even really noticed he was gone.

When he woke back up, the first thing he did was to locate the teen that had killed him. It was during this fateful night that Caim discovered, and for the first time sated, his hunger for fear. It didn't take long for the school to notice the reaction of the fight club students to his presence, and though all involved remained tight lipped as to the true reason why, it was assumed that Caim was the instigator, and he was expelled from the school. Social workers were sent to his home, and it could almost be said that his father was relieved when he was taken from there as well.

He ended up in the care of foster parents, one an ex-army officer, with hopes that the stricter upbringing would 'set him straight,' and it was he who sent Caim to CADY.

Skin: Ghoul

Name of Parents/Legal Guardians: Birth parents: Nicholas Stocker (alcoholic, beer belly, apathetic about anything that doesn't directly involve him) & Mary Reaver (absent). Legal guardians: Sherri & James Sanders (conservative pair, though James is the stricter of the two, very upper-middle class).


I don't currently have a picture for him but I am in the process of locating one. If I need to go into more detail with the parents/guardians I can think more up~

Also I wouldn't be too concerned with you being a little slower, I'm generally better with a slower pace anyway. (Though thankfully school is over in like three weeks and all my assignments are done so my time is less overwhelmed now)

[Nadir]

Name:  Ashmedai Crowley
Gender:  Male (...?)
Age:  18

Skin:  Serpentine
Stats:  Hot 2, Cold 1, Volatile -1, Dark -1
True Form:  Forked tongue, serpent tendrils for hair
Human form:  Lithe, snake eyes
Origin:  Mysterious and nomadic family
Moves:  Failing destiny (wealth), Temptation 

Parents: Maaz (father, a control freak, high expectations and low tolerance for disappointment) and Apsara (mother, lusts after what the family once was, craves glory and power above all else, often lost in daydreams) 
Background:  Home educated until in his mid-teens, groomed for the task of helping his family regain past glory, Medai wasn’t raised as male or female; he was encouraged down a path best suited his family’s wants and needs. While he developed his sense of self, he wasn’t exposed to the concept of only being one or the other gender, but of being useful or useless. His lessons focused more on manipulation and control more than the usual curriculum, meaning that Medai was unprepared for high school life. Intelligent yet incapable of understanding many of the subjects being taught, Medai soon became entangled with those who used the school campus as a hunting ground - drug dealers - before the opportunity to rebel against both the oppression of school as well as the exacting pressures of his family arose, taking his place as one of those predators, too.

With his skills, the school soon succumbed to a harrowing few months as more and more of its student body became addicts. Harsh measures had to be used to stem the flow, a record number of expulsions occurring over the course of a month. Medai was one of those, and his family placed him in another school - where the same thing happened. He was more cautious this time, not so greedy, but after a bad batch and a dozen hospitalizations and two deaths, his family pulled him out before the school or the authorities became suspicious. Instead of putting him in a new school, they looked for an alternative and came up with CADY.

Notes: Medai has facial tattoos and nose/lip piercings(pictured) and partial/incomplete sleeve tattoos. Also possesses startlingly green slit-pupil eyes. He wears brown contacts to hide the feature.