[Recruiting] Gods of the Asphalt (Unisystem)

[TheSithChicken]

Stay safe!!

Doing everything I can but I live in a Red State.

[TheSithChicken]

Added a character sheet to the first post.

[Lustful Bride]

Is there any limit to the amount of character connections we can have?

Also im not sure i understand the 'cards' referenced in an earlier post here. Will those be replacing Dice or do you have some other plan in mind?

[Thufir Hawat]

Considering I have health issues (and stress issues from a pandemic that will almost certainly kill me if I catch it) I don't expect a huge time commitment because I can't promise a huge time commitment. So this will be casually paced.

I'm sorry to hear about that! Do your best to stay safe!
(I'm sure you do already, but that's the best I can do).

Is there any limit to the amount of character connections we can have?

Also im not sure i understand the 'cards' referenced in an earlier post here. Will those be replacing Dice or do you have some other plan in mind?

It's up to the GM to decide...but IIRC, the system worked like this: you get a number of cards, something like 6, that have been drawn by the same deck. Once everyone has had them, you shuffle. The cards correspond to numbers, so now you know your "rolls" and can choose which one to play.
Once you have played them, you get new ones with no penalty...so maybe if you got some low rolls, try to avoid dangerous situations for a while!
Yes, they act as a narrative device as well .

[TheSithChicken]

Is there any limit to the amount of character connections we can have?

Not really. The barest level of use is using it to tie the PCs together.

Also im not sure i understand the 'cards' referenced in an earlier post here. Will those be replacing Dice or do you have some other plan in mind?

It would replace dice because it would be ridiculously easier for this format.

I'm sorry to hear about that! Do your best to stay safe!
(I'm sure you do already, but that's the best I can do).

Thankfully I am uniquely skilled in avoiding direct contact with humanity.

It's up to the GM to decide...but IIRC, the system worked like this: you get a number of cards, something like 6, that have been drawn by the same deck. Once everyone has had them, you shuffle. The cards correspond to numbers, so now you know your "rolls" and can choose which one to play.

Once you have played them, you get new ones with no penalty...so maybe if you got some low rolls, try to avoid dangerous situations for a while!

Yes, they act as a narrative device as well .

It's six from each player's personal deck and you don't get any new ones until you use up your full hand. I am going to go with this system after reading it. It is just better for this format. Might just be better overall.

[Smokinbarrel]

Are we submitting character sheets quietly or out here?

[TheSithChicken]

Out here if you are comfortable with that. If you want some hidden backstory or such feel free to send that to me in a PM.

[Smokinbarrel]

BASIC INFO:
Character Type: Seer (Weird One)
Full Name: Ember Lively
Age/Apparent Age: Looks 20ish.
Gender: Female.
Occupation: Freelance Photographer/Model/Hairstylist/Tattoo Artist. Paying
bills in a Gig Economy..

ADDITIONAL INFO:
Education: Bachelor Degree, a few Certificates.
Place of Birth: Oklahoma City, OK.
Ethnicity: White. French, Irish, English, & Armenian stock.
Faith: Lapsing Wiccan.
Loyalty: Solitaire.
Motto: When I say, I can cut you with a look, I mean it.
Sexuality: Pansexual, and a likely Polyamorist.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:
Height: 5 feet 9 inches.
Weight: 119 lbs.
Hair Color: Black.
Eye Color: Blue.
General Appearance:

Ember is an attractive young woman, aged  20, who stands 5'9" with a willowy figure (she'd never tell you, but she weighs 119 lbs).  Silky hair as black as a raven's wing coupled with sea-blue eyes and a flawless alabaster complexion converge for devastating effect!  She wears a soft fringe of bangs and a perpetually wry smile with small dimples. Her good looks could have landed her on the next flight to Milan...if she were only more marketable. (Code for Basic.) At least that's what the modeling agent at the Penn Agency in OKC told her.

Although Ember enjoys fashion, she dresses to suit her own tastes, gives zero fucks about impressing peers or the advertising world or anyone except herself (and her girlfriend, and anyone she might flirt with). There is room in Embers heart for Vera Wang and Nuit. She posed for Suicide Girls a month after her 18th birthday. Afterward, Ember cultivated an aesthetic intersection of Modern Witch, Flamenco Punk, & InstaGoth that evolved through her early Twenties. Plenty of form-fitting crop tops & ripped tights with a cute hat, or bell-sleeved dresses and glossy black witch boots.


                                     

HISTORY & PERSONALITY:

History:

Ember Lively always showed a predilection toward the supernatural.  Her earliest memory was her mother staying home with her while suffered a devastating fever.  Rebecca, her mother, remembers her feverish toddler begging her not to go to work at her job at the F. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City.  Early that morning, little Ember begged her mother to stay. She told Rebecca about a dream where Mommy was smothered by rocks. Rebecca called out 14 minutes before a devastating explosion leveled the federal building!

Growing up, Ember always had a sense for pending danger.  On her 15th birthday, she and her best friend Sarah attended an all-ages concert by dark wave band, Deathrattle.  After the show, the band's manager invited the girls to meet the band at a private party.  Against her better judgment, she consented.  The girls entered the limo with the manager, who surprised them by locking the doors and driving off minus the band. Larry revealed himself not only as a creeper, but a predator of another sort: Vampyre. 

Then, he bragged about his plans to drain the girls and dump them in the river.  Adrenaline surged as Ember panicked, and fought off the Vamp glamour. As Ember screamed, she felt a pressure build in her head until the limo doors unlocked and opened seemingly of their own accord!  Ember dragged Sarah from the car and staggered away.  Larry attempted to follow, but before he could get out, Ember screamed shrilly.  Suddenly, the limo was shoved by an invisible force several yards away--and into the path of an oncoming 18 wheeler!

Afterward, Ember progressively grew more cynical in her outlook.  Aware of the horrors hidden from the world, she relentlessly pursued knowledge of the occult.  Ember researched esoteric paths, taking an acute interest in Witchcraft.  Her studies also nurtured her latent telepathic and telekinetic powers.  Ember's darker outlook was reflected in a fascination with Antifa, a goth wardrobe, a love of horror films and novels, and an increasing discontent with the mundane world.

The following year, her family moved  to a small art town near Cape Cod, Massachusetts.  Ember entered James Madison High with a fierce vengeance!  She became friends with an aspiring young witch named Zoey, dated the hottest musician...and earned the enmity of the school bully.  When said bully assaulted her boyfriend, Ember took revenge in the form of a flesh-mutilating burst of mental power that nearly forced him to vomit up what seemed like half his stomach!

Ember's vengeful streak caught the attention of Arkham's Headmistress, Dr. Claudia Corday, who discreetly persuaded (read: blackmailed) Ember into enrolling in her private university.  With a full scholarship, of course. Ember had a few misadventures with Dr. Corday and her Coven, The Circle of The Red Mother. Jonny Fogg hired her as a clerk and Social Media Consultant for his curio shop. Off the clock, he taught her about kink sex and kinkier Occultist rites.

Graduation saw an uncertainty of purpose. Ember felt constrained by the coven, and all too certain that she couldn%u2019t stay with them. She also felt more than a little iffy about Jonny being a serial killer. SO many reasons to leave Massachusetts!

Perhaps the Goddess smiled on Ember, though, as she reconnected with Zoey as more than friends. An old unfulfilled flirtation grew organically into deeper feelings. They also foiled a supernatural mass murder by finally putting the rest of deathrattle into retirement with the help of a sexy Moroccan Witch. The pair hung out in Texas for a year, then chased supernatural Trouble up and down the California coastline.




PERSONALITY: Snark & Sex Appeal wrapped in form-fitting black (or red or cerulean), dealt in verbal bitch-slaps or blue-lipsticked kisses. Abrasive might be a descriptor from any Ember haters, but her mercurial moods keep people guessing.

Luckily, that pendulum swings in fun directions, too. In good moods, Ember will geek out over Giallo or comic books, dye your hair any color NOT found in Nature, or bake you homemade cheddar biscuits (the fluffy kind, not the English cookie variety). She could hardly be called an easy personality, but she is fiercely loyal, generous, and protective toward those who get past her walls. The edges already show some signs of softening with age...if weary cynicism doesn%u2019t replace them.

The perceptive sort may discern that the bluster & bravado hide the pain of one who glimpsed the hidden nightmares of the world at too young an age. Ember may alternately flash a steely glare or a flirtatious smirk, but sometimes, those crystalline blue eyes also hint at the memory of sights that took small pieces of her soul each time.

PLAYER LIMITS: No rape. No unavenged hate crimes. No trifling LOL.

CHARACTER CONNECTIONS: Zoey Cooper. Jonny Fogg, a hot Quasi-Daddy shop owner she worked for and slept with in her freshman and sophomore years at Harkness University. The Circle of The Red Mother, a coven clandestinely operating at Harkness U.

MECHANICS

ATTRIBUTES: (15 +2 from Drawbacks)

Strength: 2    Intelligence: 3
Dexterity: 3   Perception: 3
Constitution: 2 Willpower: 4


SECONDARY ATTRIBUTES:

Life Points: 32 Speed: 10
Endurance: 29 Essence Pool: 50

QUALITIES: (10 +5 from Drawbacks)
Artist (Photography)
Attractiveness +3
Essence Channeling 1
Hard To Kill 2
The Gift


DRAWBACKS: (10)
Adversary 5 (Tainted Coven)
Cruel (Level 1)
Secret 2 (Fled a Coven serving a Tainted God)
Showoff


SKILLS (25)
Beautician: 2
Brawling: 2
Crafting (Cooking): 2
Dodge:  2
Driving: 1
Fine Arts (Photography): 3
Fine Arts (Tattoo Art): 2
Hand-held Weapons (Knives): 2
Intimidation: 2
Notice: 3
Research/Investigation: 2
Rituals: 2


METAPHYSICS:
Mindhands: Strength 3
Mindhands: Art 3
Mindsight: Strength 3
Mindsight: Art 2
Mindtime: Strength 1
Mindtime: Art 1


INVOCATIONS:

(None, As Far As We Know)[/list]

[golani]

I be interested too...If there is still room...

[Callie Del Noire]

BASIC INFO:
Character Type: Wicce
Full Name: Zoey Annette Cooper
Age/Apparent Age: Early/Mid 20s
Gender: Female
Occupation: Artist, Artwork restorer, Author; contracted specialist work mostly

ADDITIONAL INFO:
Education: Masters of Literature, minor in language and art history
Place of Birth: New Orleans, La
Ethnicity: Cajun, British (WASP)
Faith: Wiccan.
Loyalty:
Motto:
Sexuality: Lesbian, bi-curious
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:
Height: 5 feet 10 inches.
Weight: 125 lbs.
Hair Color: White
Eye Color:  Blue
General Appearance:

HISTORY & PERSONALITY:

History:
Her family is mostly Cajun with a dash of connections to her mom’s side, the Hawthornes (Yeah related to the author) upon New England. Her Gran is the leader of the family (aka Coven) just outside of Nawlins proper. She is having to relearn a lot of her abilites after a family member tried to kill her during Katrina. He died messily and Zoey nearly burned out (Essence drain) slapping him with a house. Ever since then she’s been just trying to ‘get by’ and only does what workings she has to for family rituals while dealing with the death of her sister at the same time she killed her uncle.


PERSONALITY:
Zoey is fairly quiet and withdrawn, though when she is coaxed out (frequently by Amber) she can be quite daring and enthusiastic. She also opens up about art in any variety of forms, from the stuff in museum all the way to the latest Banksy or cosplay costume.

PLAYER LIMITS:

CHARACTER CONNECTIONS: Ember Lively

MECHANICS

ATTRIBUTES

Strength: 1                Intelligence: 4
Dexterity: 2              Perception: 4
Constitution: 2           Willpower: 2

SECONDARY ATTRIBUTES

Life Points 22              Speed 6/3
Endurance 29              Essence


QUALITIES:
The Gift

DRAWBACKS:
Adversaries (Various old foes/family rivals): -4
Honorable (2): -2
Minority (Lesbian) -1
Recurring Nightmares: -1

SKILLS:
Fine Arts (Drawing)
Fine Arts (Painting)

METAPHYSICS: 



Still in work  :-D Learning the system.. Zoey was easy in Buffy.. little more nuanced in Witchcraft[/list]

[TheSithChicken]

I be interested too...If there is still room...

There is absolutely still room. Any questions I could answer for you?

[TheSithChicken]

Added a new Quality to the first post concerning learning Metaphysics that your Association would not normally possess.

[Lustful Bride]

Here is my character. I still havent calculated the stats yet but i will. If anyone notices any lore mistakes or such let me know and i will correct it.

BASIC INFO:
Race: Human, Lesser Gifted. (Psychic)
Full Name:  Isabel Jenette Vazquez
Age: 28
Gender: Female.
Occupation: ATF Investigator.


ADDITIONAL INFO:
Education: Master's Degree.
Place of Birth: Virginia.
Ethnicity: Hispanic.
Faith: Christian. (constantly sways between Catholic and Protestant)
Loyalty: The United States of America. (For game purposes consider her a part of the Knight's Templar)
Motto: "The Law should never pick favorites."
Sexuality: IC: Undecided/unsure. (OOC: Pansexual).

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:
Height: 5'9''
Weight: 172
Hair color: Black
Eye color: Brown.
General Appearance: A tired looking Hispanic woman who looks slightly older than she really is due to countless all-nighters. Tends to dress formally, making others know she is a Fed. Even when dressed more casually she tends to wear things such as 5.11 Tactical clothing for women and other things that don't make her look like a casual woman out for a walk/ that says 'I'm totally law enforcement'.

HISTORY & PERSONALITY

HISTORY: Born in 1992 to two Immigrant parents, Isabel grew up surrounded by people who believed in the promise of the American Dream. Even though the reality was never as pretty as advertised, she still held onto that ideal with more certainty than she did with her own religion. Things weren't perfect, but they could be made better with enough belief and hard work. She always had a good sense of things and trusted her strange intuition to guide her along, from finding her mother's car keys, to almost wining the lottery once. It began to lead her on a path towards law enforcement that she wanted to follow through on and make her neighborhood safer.

Then came September 11th, and Izzy's path changed. The American Dream was under threat by those who wanted to see it burn, and while she couldn't see herself enlisting in the military, she did see herself taking action to protect the Homefront. She followed through on her new instinct and at first tried to join the FBI, only for that to fall through due to internal politics and lack of and her intuition to take her towards the bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. While it didn't have the same Hollywood reputation as the FBI, it dealt with many similar dangers from the countries' own citizens, and Izzy's instincts told her this was where she would find her place.

As time went on, she began to see that not all threats to America were external, there was just as much danger inside the country as outside of it. Some days it felt like there was more danger from those who live within it than from distant insurgents. Many of which were utterly ignored or given a slap on the wrist, even when they were a clear and present danger.

She believes in supporting the Constitution against all enemies Foreign and Domestic, and in trusting the strange sixth sense that has always guided her actions. Leading her to encounter others with similar abilities as her own. A strange group of people that consider themselves protector's of mankind. She bumped into an elderly member of their group while holding up a middle finger to a band of Nazis who had decided to demonstrate in public. She'd just happened to sense his innate ability as well as he was getting ready to stroll up and give the Nazis a beating personally, when she old man sensed her.

Inducted into his group, she began to learn more about the world, the secrets just beyond the horizon, and how to better use her abilities against the foes she'd come to hate, and those which could doom the entire world.

She hasn't fully trusted many of those she's met. She isn't sure she buys into their whole 'Knights Templar' gimmick either. but they have shown her how to tap into her abilities. They share many of the same beliefs she does, and agree with her that the government is too lenient on right wing insurgencies. Though she doesn't believe that they are having their string pulled by some supernatural boogeyman, she does believe that if something isn't done, society will be harmed as a whole.

So of course when she spotted a new threat, she didn't listen as her superiors (Both ATF and Templar) told her to leave it be for now. How could they expect her to sit on her hands after all they had taught her and trained her to do? So what if she didn't have hard evidence yet? It wouldn't matter if the guy kept adding to his body count. So she decided to take action. Sanctioned or not, something had to be done. Thankfully she wasn't the only person with a bone to pick.

PERSONALITY: 'My Country and my Duty before all else.' This is a good way of describing Isabel. Yes she does have a life outside of her work, but when she is on the clock she puts away all other thoughts and isn't afraid to cut down on her personal time if it means doing a better job. The world is a dangerous place, with many seeking to actively harm others for the pettiest of reasons. Someone has to be there to stop them, and if it means being a government lapdog, she will accept her role.




PLAYER LIMITS:  No character Rape. Injuries, cosmic horror,  and such are fine though.




CHARACTER CONNECTIONS: WIP

MECHANICS

ATTRIBUTES

Strength                Intelligence
Dexterity               Perception
Constitution           Willpower

SECONDARY ATTRIBUTES

Life Points              Speed
Endurance              Essence


QUALITIES:

DRAWBACKS:

SKILLS:

METAPHYSICS:

[TheSithChicken]

I am loving the backstories and plot hooks building up in pms but don't forget to discuss everyone's relationship with each other.

[Smokinbarrel]

L.B., how do Ember & Zoey know Isabel?

[Lustful Bride]

L.B., how do Ember & Zoey know Isabel?

I genuinely have no idea. Maybe the Templars had files on them and she used that to make contact and ask them if they were interested in getting even with a killer?

[Smokinbarrel]

As an officer of the law, you could investigate the disappearance of a rock band, and what Ember & Zoey might know about it. There’s no concert venue footage, but street cams recorded them arriving at the bar hosting the last show that deathrattle ever played.

[TheSithChicken]

If you are all unsure of how you met perhaps focus on the hunt for the serial killer that led to your current predicament?

[TheBlackThrone]

I've been looking at this RP, and I even downloaded the book and read through it. I have a character in development, but I've been so on and off because it is a system game, and as far as how game mechanics work in relation to writing actions, I feel like I'm going to struggle with that because I'm mainly a free-former, and understanding when something needs to be a roll, or in this case, a card move. I would have no idea.

[TheSithChicken]

When to make a roll or play a card will be easy. I'll ask you to. After a little bit you'll get the hang of it.

[Thufir Hawat]

And don't know whether it helps, but I can tell you the general principle that most Referees/GMs follow: "If an action might be challenging, given the character skills and abilities, roll. If success and/or failure might be especially harmful or beneficial, roll. If the GM wants to know how well you did, roll. Otherwise, assume success and go on!"

[Smokinbarrel]

I just edited my character mechanics stats into my character sheet post! The tags are a little wonky, but I’ll give it another quick review for information accuracy. I can’t wait to see what the rest of you reveal!

[Thufir Hawat]

First impression: how did you get 62 Essence ?
Unless it's some special kind of (possibly Tainted) power, or you're omitting some advantages...

Second impression: I think you need more Intimidate, if you're going to be the social bully. As it is, she's the only one who believes she has the ability to be mean .

[Smokinbarrel]

Ah, I goofed and added the Essence points for my Seer powers to my Endurance. It should be 50.

Good point on the Intimidation. Her Willpower gives her a decent head start, but since she’s doing hair and tattoos as fairly recent gigs, I can lower those for a less polished rank each.

[Thufir Hawat]

Ah, I goofed and added the Essence points for my Seer powers to my Endurance. It should be 50.

Good point on the Intimidation. Her Willpower gives her a decent head start, but since she’s doing hair and tattoos as fairly recent gigs, I can lower those for a less polished rank each.

Generally speaking, you don't want any important skill to be 0, no matter the attribute. Because you're then looking at rolling your attribute alone...and I'm pretty sure that Witchcraft includes a non-proficiency penalty. Remember, you're looking at a stat+skill+roll being equal to at least 9 for basic success! I'm sure you can do the math.
And that's for basic success. You want more if you're expecting halfway competent opposition. Because then you have to beat whatever the opposing character's level of success was.

And yes, I've played Witchcraft before, so I can confirm the above holds true in play. However, that's not a big advantage, since I've never played in the default setting.