The Nightmare Firm (Freeform Dark Urban Fantasy) [Closed]

[Totoro]

Game Overview

The Nightmare Firm is a freeform dark urban fantasy game set in London in 2019. The game will be placed in Extreme due to containing a wide variety of dark themes. All dark scenes will be kept to appropriate threads whether sexual or not. This game is open to writers and characters of any gender or sexuality. It will centre around a criminal organisation made up entirely of supernatural members who operate out of a private location known as 'Club Nightmare'. These supernatural beings are vastly varied but are collectively known as 'The Cursed'. The game will focus on immoral people, the struggle of humanity against monstrosity, crime, social situations and the club's surreal environment. It will not focus on combat or a large overarching plot, just the lives of these supernatural beings. There will be space for smut but it will be kept to it's own threads and entirely optional. Main characters must be Cursed but players can write as human visitors to the club and do not need a supernatural character to do so.

This game will be a sandbox environment. It requires player activity to survive. Please PM people who's characters you like. Start open scenes and write with anyone who joins in. Be open to connections. This game is now recruiting. Please post here or PM me if you have any questions, or simply send a CS to both GM's. This game will have a Co-GM, JessLowell12. She will be helping with CS assessments, GM'ing and other game decisions. Please PM CS's to both Gm's, not just one. This game will have  Discord setup if it goes ahead. I am usually easy to reach either via E PM's or via Discord.

I would like to thank Timeless, Amarlo and JessLowell12 for their input and feedback on this game's worldbuilding thread prior to the game starting. It was all extremely helpful. I'd also like to thank several others for encouraging me prior to run the game prior to it being started. If that was you, thank you!

Setting Overview

This segment will be a fairly clear out of character overview of the setting. This game is set in an original dark urban fantasy setting I have named 'Dark Reflection'. This setting was created primarily for this game. The setting's goals were to create varied supernatural beings with a reasonable power level, with good reasons to conceal themselves from humans and a great deal of struggles to deal with. The setting's core concept is 'The Cursed', the collective term for an assortment of fantasy beings who are each damned with their own unique Curse. These Curses are not designed to be beaten. In the majority of cases the Curse will destroy it's bearer. This game is more about accepting the curse, learning to live with the duality between human and monster and seeing the flaws and benefits of humanity and monstrosity. This game is not about winning or being a hero, it is about finding a way to live with being a monster.

Traits of the beings used from other mythology such as a vampire's fear of a holy cross should be ignored unless explicitly mentioned in this game's worldbuilding thread. The supernatural beings have been thoroughly researched and if something is not present there's likely a good reason. Not everything that deserves to be a main Cursed could get the full time, or it was too close to something else. Via subtypes I have tried to include mythology and legends from across the world to the best of my ability. If you wish to play a supernatural creature that you believe could fit as a subtype don't hesitate to ask, though bear in mind I may say no if it does not fit the feel of the setting.

It should be noted that whilst many of the listed Cursed subtypes originate from a specific area of the world there are absolutely no racial or gender limitations on characters. For example not all Kitsune must be Asian. I would love to see a good deal of diversity in this game. London is a city of 8.8 million citizens with over 3 million immigrants. Supernatural creatures have emigrated and all kinds can be found, in relatively small numbers, across the entire world. Likewise there are no gender limitations. If you would like to play a male Hag or a female troll I have no issue with this.

In this game all of the Cursed have a more monstrous form with an exotic, unusual appearance. Notably an exotic form's gender does not have to be the same as their human gender, allowing characters to change back and forth between gender. This is intended less for smut and more for unique perspectives and interesting, complex relationship between humans and their monstrous side.

Dark Reflection

Worldbuilding thread

What Can I Expect From This Game?

• An accepting environment welcoming exotic and unusual characters, varied genders and sexuality.
• A sandbox game allowing players to create their own scenes and personal character arcs.
• A relaxed stance on both activity and posting rate, though activity is of course encouraged speed is not needed here.
• An active GM with a variety of NPC's available for scenes.
• A thought-out background system hopefully balancing the characters and avoiding excessive power fantasies.
• A combination of London culture, gangsters, criminals and urban dark fantasy.
• A game that focuses on the emotional impact of being a Cursed, struggling between humanity and monstrosity.

What Can't I Expect From This Game?

• A place to act out any fantasy or scene ever. This game is dark in nature and accepting. I cannot guarantee someone will wish to write a certain scene with you. Look at what others are seeking.
• A GM who regularly writes victims. I do it very poorly. I am encouraging players to NPC human victims for various nefarious purposes. Not all humans must be victims.
• A game focused on combat, heroics, victory or power. This game is about the suffering and impact of the curse, and mainly set in a Club.
• A game with enforced post rates. This game will be as active as the players make it as it is an open sandbox.
• The ability to assume knowledge of the supernatural entities featured based on other mythology. It has been adapted in various ways to balance and adapt, aiming for equality whilst keeping diversity.

Rules

1. Don't cause or participate in drama. Be respectful of other players. If an issue comes up, PM me.
2. Don't godmode. This rule applies to both other player characters and NPC's, even victims.
3. Write in the third person past tense. A reasonable standard of English is required. (Spellcheck, grammar check, no one liners or overly short posts)
4. Please communicate with others, arrange your connections and be a part of the Firm and Club.
5. Whilst this game allows for smut and dark content please keep it to the appropriate threads and do not include smutty or extreme scenes in inappropriate places.
6. Please read and respect the O/O's of other writers and characters before engaging in smutty or dark content with them.
7. Do not engage in non-con, violence or smut with anyone else's character without the writer's permission. Non-Con and other dark content may be written in the game but the character's writer must agree to it even if the character does not. Please realise that members of the Firm may not harm, assault or upset other members and will likely be killed for doing so. If the writers involved cannot agree on the outcome of player vs. player conflict please do not write it.
8. Do not shame anyone else for any aspect of their character. This could be gender, sexuality or any kind of kinks or dark content they wish to write. If it does not interest you or disturbs you, avoid reading. Scenes will have warnings and be avoidable. The only limitations in this game are Elliquiy Site rules, characters ages having to be 18+ rather than 16+.
9. Please read the available setting information and do your best to follow the logic and limitations of this setting in order to keep it consistent.
10. Communicate. If you want scenes, be pro-active in seeking them. If you are going to be absent for a while inform those you are writing with.

Character Creation

Submitting a CS: Please send CS's to both GM's (Sun Wukong and JessLowell12) via PM.

The Character's Roles: The player characters are a part of a criminal organisation. Their Curse has given them little real choice. If they go it alone they will almost certainly lose to their curse. Many curses force the harming of humans and can cause even a soft soul to take human lives. They don't have to be killers but they have to be a part of the Nightmare Firm and they have to do their job and play their role if they expect to survive there.

Please Do: Be unique. Unusual. Creative. I am looking for diverse genders, sexualities, ethnicities and curses. Real life faceclaims are a necessity for this game. Art of a character's exotic form is not a necessity. Please try to avoid using the same exotic form art as someone else. If you wish to, contact that person. They have the right to veto. Use the 'I am known for' segment to give your character a little, flavourful aspect of uniqueness without focusing on perceived power. Create a thought out and interesting individual.

Please Don't: Complain at anyone using the same subtype as you. I will limit subtypes if one starts to grow too common. Use anime, cartoon or art images for your character's human appearance. Create a character who is older than their species may be in this setting. (Note, for example, no vampire has made it past 150, and most don't get far past 100. Age does not make you stronger. The human mind has a finite memory and will forget things eventually.) Try to powergame, grant your characters powers their subtypes do not have.

Read the worldbuilding thread: The worldbuilding thread will have the information about the type of Cursed you choose to write. This does not need to be copied into the CS anywhere but it is important to remember for the same of the game. Each type of Cursed has a 'Writing an X' segment. It is not there to tell you how to play your character but simply to clarify how that kind of Cursed works in an Out Of Character manner and specifically in the context of an Elliquiy group game.

Read the CS: Each segment of the CS will have a line or two detailing some base advice on how to fill it out.

Humans and NPC's: This game will allow players to write as many human NPC's as they want. Players do not need any full PC's to be an 'NPC writer'. All NPC CS's for each player will be stored in a single post. NPC's will have listed limits and goals. It is possible to begin a character as an NPC and transition them to a PC by causing them to acquire a Curse. If an NPC becomes cursed they must either become a PC of that player, be given to someone else as a PC, become a GM NPC or be retired from the game. Players may not have Cursed NPC's.

Cursed CS:

Cursed CS

Code Select Expand

[float=left][img height=200 padding=5]http://via.placeholder.com/300[/img][/float]
[u][b]Basic Information[/b][/u]
[b]Name:[/b] Legal name
[b]Curse:[/b] See [url=https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=306845.msg14937396#msg14937396]This Post[/url] for links to the various types of Cursed.
[b]Subtype:[/b] Each segment on types of Cursed ends with subtypes. All Cursed have a subtype.
[b]Citizenship:[/b]
[b]Place of Birth:[/b]
[b]Rank:[/b] See [url=https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=306845.msg14941398#msg14941398]This Post[/url] for information on Rank & Role. Cannot be a Master or Grandmaster.
[b]Role:[/b] See [url=https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=306845.msg14941398#msg14941398]This Post[/url] for information on Rank & Role.

[hr]

[u][b]Physical Description[/b][/u]
[b]Age:[/b] Please note their physical appearance age, the real age they died at if they did and their age as a Cursed.
[b]Gender:[/b] Anything at all is acceptable. (Please not monster form gender may be different and should be noted in brackets.)
[b]Sexuality:[/b] Anything at all is acceptable.
[b]Ethnicity:[/b]
[b]Height:[/b]
[b]Weight:[/b]
[b]Eye Colour:[/b]
[b]Hair Colour:[/b]
[b]General Appearance:[/b] How do they style themselves, including their clothing and the way they present themselves. Distinguishing features or marks. How do they manage the Signs of their curse? Do they give in to them or try to conceal them? What does their monster form look like?

[center][img height=200]http://via.placeholder.com/300[/img][img height=200]http://via.placeholder.com/300[/img][img height=200]http://via.placeholder.com/300[/img][/center]

[hr]

[center][u][b]Personality & History[/b][/u][/center]

[b]Personality:[/b] What are they like as a person? What do they like and dislike. How do they feel about their Curse. Their life with the Nightmare Firm. Their personality should include distinct flaws as well as strengths. How do they feel about other Cursed. How do they feel about humanity.

[b]History:[/b] A brief idea of their personal history including their human life, how they were Cursed and how long they have been dealing with it. Why they joined the Nightmare Firm. What they have been doing since. Minimum three paragraphs.

[hr]

[center][u][b]Skills and Strengths[/b][/u][/center]

What is your character best at? Either natural talents or thoroughly trained skills. These should be things a human can do, not their shifter traits. Try to keep to a maximum of their five most notable skills. Other, minor, ones can be included in Extras if you like. Try to avoid characters who are excessively militaristic or some kind of master of warfare. They are club members and criminals not superheroes or ancient warriors.

[hr]

[center][u][b]My Curse[/b][/u][/center]
[center]I am a [i]INSERT SUBTYPE AND CURSED TYPE HERE[/i]
Cursed with [i]INSERT CURSE NAME HERE[/i][/center]

[b]I am notable for:[/b] Add a sentence or two noting what your character is notably good and bad at in relation to their curse. This should be something like 'I am notably agile for an X' or 'I am very gifted with my affinity for X magic', 'My charm is notably powerful'. It should not be adding affinity for magic they should not have, adding entire abilities they should not have or any kind of statement that makes them entirely better than others. You may be notably good at one thing and notably bad at no things or notably good at two things and notably bad at one thing. You may also be notably bad at one or two things and not notably good at anything, if you wish.

[b]I deal with my Curse by:[/b] How do they manage their curse. What does a vampire do for blood. What does a werewolf do on the night of the full moon. Anything works. But they must find a way to walk that line between humanity and monstrosity. Ideally I'm looking for both an idea of how they deal with their main curse and it's other costs and negative impacts.

[hr]

[center][u][b]Extras[/b][/u][/center]

Any extra information or details you would like to include.

Human CS:

Human CS

Code Select Expand

[float=left][img height=200 padding=5]http://via.placeholder.com/300[/img][/float]
[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Personality Traits:[/b] A list of several core personality traits.
[b]Appearance:[/b] A sentence or two including a loose idea of height, weight, hair colour, eye colour and some other simple details.
[b]History:[/b] A brief idea of their history. Can be just one paragraph.

Taken Faceclaims:

Taken Faceclaims

Cate Blanchett
Jon Hamm
Mads Mikkelsen
Patrick Marcelino
Jodie Comer
Jeff Bridges
Joaquin Phoenix
Chris John Millington
Lady Gaga
Tom Hardy
Jason Momoa
Anthony Joshua
Michael B. Jordan
AJ Cook
Anna Kendrick
Jang Dong Gun
Johnathan Rhys Meyers
Keith Morris
Dytto
Haruma Miura
Khaled el-Nabawy
Vienna Kendall
Alyda Grace

F.A.Q

This segment will be used to answer any questions that regularly come up. Before asking a question please make sure you have read through this post and checked appropriate areas of the worldbuilding thread. Thank you!

Can I play a Slayer or former Slayer? Unfortunately, no. Curses cannot be removed. A Slayer is stuck as a Slayer forever. And a Slayer will inevitably be forced to kill cursed. Having one in the Firm would be too great a risk. Most Cursed will never risk associating with any Slayer, and will kill them on sight.

Can my character have multiple Curses? No. Once a character is Cursed they become immune to any and all other Curses.

How many of each subtype will be allowed in? Initially I will be allowing two PC's of each subtype. No player may make two characters of the same subtype. This rule does not apply to Vampyr or Werewolves as I will be encouraging those to be the more common ones.

How many characters can I play? Two Cursed player characters. Any number of human NPC's within reason.

Can I play a Master of X role? There has been a change of heart on this. At game start all Masters will be NPC roles. They may become open to players at a later date depending on circumstances. So, no for the time being.

Thread Links

OOC Threads
Recruitment
Worldbuilding
Characters Thread
OOC Chat

IC Threads
Club Nightmare
Private Club
Underground Club
London
Light/Moderate Graphic
Extreme Graphic
History

[blue bunny sparkle]

Interest flag planted!

Such great character type choices! It is really hard to choose!

But always for me, I would like to play a Fae.

I don't have discord though. 

[Totoro]

Discord's not necessary it'll just be available. It'll be used for chatting and plotting. Any GM stuff will be posted in the game's E OOC too.

I did try to be very inclusive, so it's led to quite a lot of options.

[Dotley]

Oh so interested! 

Adore the rendition of vampires in this setting. I'm definitely inclined to write one of 'em.

[Lyrical]

So much, yes!

Count me in as interested in a Werecat (panther)

[Totoro]

Glad to have both of your interests.

Thank you for the comment on vampires!

[xPeachyPuff]

Planting an interest flag as well c:

[Totoro]

Based on this interest so far in a few hours, and the fact I know there's at least 2-3 others interested, I would say it's a fairly safe bet that this game's going ahead. If anyone wants to start throwing around character concepts feel free.

[JessLowell12]

Hello everyone! I'm Jess, the Co-GM for this game.

Its so awesome to see all the interest for this already! I have a feeling this will be an epic game! I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with!

[Cerevan]

Dot alerted me to this and it looks so good so I guess I live here now. Putting in interest as playing a genderfluid zenko kitsune. Gotta keep things lively from the first.

[blue bunny sparkle]

*claps hands!*

So many lovely people!

[Totoro]

Lively things sound great to me!

Just for the record the aim here is ongoing recruitment. Attrition is a thing. I want this to be a kind of 'open house' sandbox game. If it gets too crazy I may have to slow recruitment but I'm open to having a lot of writers in this one.

[Wolfling72]

peeks in Sun hates me...

[Dotley]

Dot alerted me to this and it looks so good so I guess I live here now. Putting in interest as playing a genderfluid zenko kitsune. Gotta keep things lively from the first.

Yay Cere!

*claps hands!*

So many lovely people!

Agreed so much. Lots of great peeps here <3



Character wise I'm working on a vampire (vampyr). Because I just love monstrous vampires so much and cannot resist making one. I'm still trying to decide between the assassin or thief role, but either way she'll be a sweet faced lady dom. Are FCs requests allowed yet? If so I'd like to stake Sarah Bolger.

[Totoro]

FC requests are allowed, yes.

I think I'm going to do one week reservations on a FC. Possibly with extension with communication.

She's duly noted!

[Timeless]

Putting my interest here - but Sun already knows. <__<

I'm debating between a sorcerer or a kitsune, so we'll see.

[xPeachyPuff]

I'm debating on a Banshee Spirit or a Sloth Demonhost....Hmmm...

[VonDoom]

I'm interested, currently mulling over ideas.

Might a 'Possessed Doll/Mannequin' sort of Twisted subtype be a boon to the game? And sorry if I missed it in the writeup, but did you have any specific form that you wanted proposals for something like that to take? A brief description of the type, a mockup listing to match the existing subtypes with ideas for +/- entries? My specific inspiration for it stems from an antagonist in the short 'Princess Miyu' series where a demonic mannequin kidnaps attractive men and drains them of life force until they, too, are but lifeless shells/mannequins for her to manipulate. Perhaps a dichotomy between being surprisingly resilient for their kind yet still easily damaged (cracks in skin, damage sustained revealing the monstrous form beneath the 'human facade' -- more blemishes that won't heal unless fixed with some sort of sinister ritual?) could work for these.

[Totoro]

I'm debating on a Banshee Spirit or a Sloth Demonhost....Hmmm...

Either's definitely welcome. I wasn't expecting anyone to go for a Sloth demonhost so that's fun!

There's a few I didn't expect.

I'm interested, currently mulling over ideas.

Might a 'Possessed Doll/Mannequin' sort of Twisted subtype be a boon to the game? And sorry if I missed it in the writeup, but did you have any specific form that you wanted proposals for something like that to take? A brief description of the type, a mockup listing to match the existing subtypes with ideas for +/- entries? My specific inspiration for it stems from an antagonist in the short 'Princess Miyu' series where a demonic mannequin kidnaps attractive men and drains them of life force until they, too, are but lifeless shells/mannequins for her to manipulate. Perhaps a dichotomy between being surprisingly resilient for their kind yet still easily damaged (cracks in skin, damage sustained revealing the monstrous form beneath the 'human facade' -- more blemishes that won't heal unless fixed with some sort of sinister ritual?) could work for these.

So, for this game the core of the Twisted is a half/half thing. Unless the Cursed was half-doll half-human I don't think it would be a Twisted. I actually it might be more likely to fit as a spirit. If the doll was pretty I would say it would be a spirit, if it was disturbing to behold it could fit as a Grotesque.

I do see the appeal of one as a Twisted due to the artistic bent but it doesn't quite make sense with the half-half definition of Twisted.

If you were to push it towards Spirit or Grotesque which would you do?

As far as proposals I would honestly prefer it was just 'I would like to play X core concept'. You can throw out some ideas if you like but ultimately it's all got to be made to balance/fit among the overall Cursed type and against others, so I'm open to try and work ideas in but not everything is doable. E.g I have tried to avoid any kind of outright possession and mind control on purpose. Both are generally ultimately dull to write in a group game. Mental influence and charm is usually what I have aimed for.

I can certainly think of directions to take a 'Haunted Doll' archetype, which I'm currently leaning towards being a Spirit. Good idea!

[VonDoom]

Ahh, to be honest, I wasn't entirely clear on if it literally has to be half/half along their physical form or if it could be more of a dichotomy/both at the same time thing as well. I suppose the subtypes should have clued me in.

Spirit would probably be better than Grotesque, I agree. Perhaps if such a Grotesque could exist that does possess a beautiful form but shuns all other forms of beauty and wishes to turn/spoil them? Probably a bit too opposed to their basic concept, kind of like an angelic-looking Nosferatu rendering their whole thing moot.

[Totoro]

I could potentially get behind some kind of 'masked monster' grotesque. A monster form with a 'natural' mask that conceals their grotesque nature. 'In denial of their ugliness' kind of thing and determined to destroy other pretty things. So a grotesque with the initial appearance of beauty.

I'll figure out something along the lines of 'Haunted Doll' with some kind of shell-like nature and some manipulative tricks, as a Spirit.

[JessLowell12]

peeks in Sun hates me...

Aww Wolfling, nobody can hate you. :)

I'm debating on a Banshee Spirit or a Sloth Demonhost....Hmmm...

Either of those sound superbly interesting!

Putting my interest here - but Sun already knows. <__<

I'm debating between a sorcerer or a kitsune, so we'll see.

Join the darkside of sorcery! Muahahahhaha

Either from you will be very epic!

Yay Cere!

Agreed so much. Lots of great peeps here <3



Character wise I'm working on a vampire (vampyr). Because I just love monstrous vampires so much and cannot resist making one. I'm still trying to decide between the assassin or thief role, but either way she'll be a sweet faced lady dom. Are FCs requests allowed yet? If so I'd like to stake Sarah Bolger.

I love the vampire idea!

Ahh, to be honest, I wasn't entirely clear on if it literally has to be half/half along their physical form or if it could be more of a dichotomy/both at the same time thing as well. I suppose the subtypes should have clued me in.

Spirit would probably be better than Grotesque, I agree. Perhaps if such a Grotesque could exist that does possess a beautiful form but shuns all other forms of beauty and wishes to turn/spoil them? Probably a bit too opposed to their basic concept, kind of like an angelic-looking Nosferatu rendering their whole thing moot.

Your enthusiasm for this is so refreshing, I cannot wait to see what you come up with!

[Amarlo]

Interested, but you already knew that, didn't you?

[Totoro]

Might've done. It's a mystery.

[Kuroneko]

Interested as either a shifter (Asian based, such as a bakeneko or a tengu) or a greed based demon host.