The Struggle for Aldaris - An Apocalyptic Fantasy RP - Interest Thread

The old and noble land of Aldaris. A land of chaos and struggle. A land of ancient ruins, mystery and magic. Where the determined humans build cities of stone in the fields, the dwarves build their halls of stone in the mountains, the elves their bastions deep in the forests, orcs carve their living in settlements in the wastelands, beasts and monsters stalk the wilds and the Gods observe on from the Heavens. Aldaris is a land of danger, sure, but also full of beauty and life. A place full of opportunity and life for all living within.

Or at least... that is how things were before the coming of the Dark Lord. Once a simple man known Lordan, his rise to power is framed in mystery and legend. It is not known by which means he obtained the power and knowledge he used to carve a bloody path into his dominion. It is just known, that it was enough for him to crush all opposition and not even the combined efforts of the greatest free powers of his time were enough to vanquish him. He sat on his new throne, in the Cradle of Humanity, the great city of Teras in the very heart of Aldaris. He renamed the city to Verthnix and styled himself as Lord Karnas, Emperor of Aldaris. And with the greatest armies of all races crushed against his might, it did not ring as a empty boast. The Empire of Karnas spread unchecked through the defenseless settlement of his defeated foes, spreading like poison from the heart of the continent.

It has been thirty seven years since the Darkness first came to the world. Since then, Aldaris has changed a lot, but nothing more than the city of Verthnix. The once proud Capital is now at the same time grander and yet more miserable than it has ever been. Magic and technology both were too conquered by the Dark Lord and it shows on his Capital City. Gigantic buildings taller than any ever built in the past now dot the center of his capital, bastions of his dark power were those loyal to him dwell in comforts hundreds of years of innovation beyond anything found in the city before. Meanwhile, the various races of the world now are more united than ever in their misery as they scavenge a meager living under the shadow of the behemoth towers of the capital. The Emperor and his people are not at all discriminatory in whom to bring torment.

While all this pain abounds, the Gods remain silent to all prayers, seemingly abandoning the Mortal World. Demonkind, on the other hand, keeps no such distance. Lord Karnas openly consorts with the most vile servants of the Abyss and counts many of their kind as his highest advisors and more of their lowly brethren as his enforcers thorough the city.

It is a wretched state of affairs... however not all of the world yet lies in darkness. For as corrupt as the heart of the Empire has become, Aldaris is a great land and the reach of Lord Karnas is not as great as he would like. Moving away form the heart of the land, there remain entire towns and nations free from his dominion, tribes of people wandering away from his hold and the mighty wilds which even within the Empire, fiercely resist any taming. And even within the depths of darkness, within Verthnix itself valiant hearts struggle to prevent evil to reign undisputed.

However, it is not just mortals who stand against the spreading taint of Darkness. For Nature, Magic and the Divine each have planted seeds of hope for the possibility bright future in Aldaris. By nature twenty five years before and outside of the reach of Lord Karnas appeared scattered upon the world eggs of the mightiest beast ever to draw breath upon this land... the Eggs of Dragons. The hatchlings from these eggs would be found by the free people of the land. Under the right influence, these intelligent beasts might grow into fearsome foes for the Dark Lord.

At the same time, the Mystic Weave of Magic let into the world singular, powerful spirits into Aldaris. These newborn creatures of magic would explore the world, formless and imperceptible before incarnating into a body idealized by themselves. These creatures would become Sorcerers, created and living of magic, they would wield it like no other could.

And finally... in the old forgotten places, away from the influence of the Karnas, powerful items of great power took shape. Protected by traps, trickery, monsters, riddles and all manner of obstacles meant to ward off the unfit, these powerful weapons, the Divine Arms, are meant to be wielded by the heroes of this Dark Age. These were to be the last gift of the Gods to their besieged charges before their apparent exile.

Thus, it is thirty seven years since darkness took the land and twenty five since the seeds of hope have been planted. And it is now, where the struggle between good and evil will truly begin... where it shall be decided if the seeds shall bear fruit, or they shall perish and the world with it.

And that's the opening for my latest idea for an RP. Basically, play as a dragon, a sorcerer, Divine Arms' Wielder or another powerful agent of change for this world. Combine your might and take the Empire down piece by piece, finally taking on the Emperor himself.

There is no sheet just yet, because I'm not done world building just yet, but given that I got this far I wanted to gauge interest and get feedback from potential players.

Also, if it doesn't show, this whole set up is a big mash up of stuff I stole for half a dozen different sources.

So, any takers?

Addendum of the 5:00 am of the 31/12/2012. Merry New Years Eve!

— Dragons —

Dragons, as mentioned, are Nature's answer to the Darkness taking over the land. There might be bigger beasts and monsters, but a fully grown dragon is pound for pound the most powerful beast in creation. Their powerful wings allow them to fly, they have access to magic while having a natural resistance to it, they have powerful breath weapons and they are all around living engines of destruction with their powerful muscles, razor sharp teeth, horns, claws and tails.

They come in a variety of species which are most easily distinguished by their color with Red Dragons breathing Fire and being generally having the most physical strength of them all, Black Dragons having the powerful breath of Acid and being incredibly adept at surviving underwater, Blue Dragons breathe Lightning and are good fliers and burrowers, White Dragons breathe Ice and are able to survive the coldest temperatures as well as being the most physically resilient of the dragon species and Green Dragons having a breath of magical force and are the most attuned to weaving magic as well as having a stronger capability to use a natural camouflage.

It usually takes a dragon about half a century to come into their full power, however, the dragon eggs scattered on the earth by Nature itself are of a purer breed which grow into their power faster. While still being far away from their full capabilities after only living for thirty years tops, these Dragons are already incredibly powerful beings around the size of a cottage. The eggs have all been placed where some sentient being will find them... and from their example and care they will learn for good or ill.

— Sorcerers —

The Sorcerers are the answer of the Arcane Power to the threat posed by the Dark Tyrant. Created from the source of all mana, these new spirits are released with boundless potential into the world. They then are to wander, to learn and then to take a sentient form to interact with the physical realm.

These Sorcerers will be of the most powerful spellcasters to ever draw breath. While the Wizards of the world are usually bound by rituals, formulas and spells in order to draw the power of the Arcane, the Sorcerers have no such restrictions. Being spirits of pure magic, they draw upon it naturally and creatively to affect the world around them. The only restriction upon them, lies on what they most developed their talents in their formative years as they first took form on the world. Thus, while all of the Sorcerers could create barriers of magic, the one who spent his first years creating shield of energy to protect himself would have a great affinity with this feat and the barriers of his fellow Sorcerers would not compare to those of his.

Finally, all Sorcerers are represented by a color. Their magical auras, their mana, and the tone of their magical energy will most of the time be of that one color unless the effect of the spell itself is of a different one. Thus, a Green Sorcerer would not inherently create green colored water, though his aura will glow green when he is performing his magic.

— Sacred Arms —

The Sacred Arms are the final gift of the Deities of Aldaris to the Mortals fighting the Shadows. These items are heavily enchanted weapons meant to battle evil, with incredible magical properties and effects imbued by the myriad of Goodly Deities of the land. All of these are secured in a variety of locations, going from mystic forgotten ruins, to vaults appearing in the middle of wilderness and cavern complexes deep in the land. To get to them, challenges must be overcome, the nature of which is as varied as the Gods which created them.

Most of these are holy weapons, taking the forms of swords, axes, lances, bows or any other possible armament, though there are some with more exotic forms like armors or accessories.

What is true to all of the Sacred Arms is that after beating the challenges required glance at these those laying their hands on them will be changed forever more. The bearers of these Arms will become more than they were before, will not be plagued with age or disease and will have their physical capabilities improved. Some might also experience changes to their form, but these changes are always benign and accepted by the wielder.

— The Heroes of Old Aldaris —

And for this final role... there are the Heroes of Old Aldaris, those who fight for freedom and good without being born dragons, without the natural magic of the Sorcerers or the Sacred Arms to bear. Those who use none of the new weapons provided for the fight against Karnas but instead battle as the heroes of old did.

These people take a wide variety of forms, with many different talents and specializations. After all, Aldaris always was a land of great diversity. Be they one of the great Artificers, gifted with the ability to build and use all sorts of technology, to create and innovate in ways few can understand. In the past, the great Artificers of old created wondrous weapons of power, created great, giant, metal suits to clash into battle and many other wonders.

Or perhaps one of the great Wizards of the Aldaris might step into the fray, wielding the old rule based magic that has been passed down his order for centuries, perfected and refined each spell into art.

From the daring leader of the Rebellion, to the Monster of the Wilds, to the Warrior Clans, the Wizards, the Artificers, the Adventurers, the Dwarven lords, Elven kingdoms, Orc Warchiefs and the Divine Orders and many others... there are a lot of powers which have yet to be broken by the Dark Emperor.

Artificers.

They are quite a particular sort of people, those gifted with the utmost ability to create and enhance. Nobody knows where their unearthly skill comes from... a God of Technology that grants his blessing? An Universal Energy or Knowledge base which seeks an output? May they be people that had found themselves in a superior state of mind which allows them to craft their wonders?

Nobody knows how an Artificer comes into being, but their affinity for machines and the technology are indeed something to reckon. They are born or made one in hundred million among almost any intelligent race. There are great inventors, scientist and the sort in Aldaris... people that can advance the sciences building upon what was there before to move the world forward. However an Artificer goes beyond that. Their skill and ability are supernatural.

With no tools, no knowledge, nor any good prime materials they may start working with only sticks and sand... and somehow from it start to make tools and inventions. Their minds work on a completely different way from the norm, looking into the world as pure creators, instinctively working out the way for technology to arise from their surroundings. To them, creating is as natural as breathing.

They are the Daedalus, the Arquimedes, the Da Vinci. Able to build works far greater than any single human should be able to accomplish in three lifetimes. The cities in which they work, should they be accepted and are willing to work with them, experience Renaissances of technology, jumping a couple centuries in development and usually obtaining a wondrous structure or two.

Each of them have their own special focuses their quirks and their way of accomplishing thing. This is what Artificers are.

However, they are also teachers and nearly naturally they draw students to themselves. Due to these students, the term Artificer has been degraded a little in the world of Aldaris. Students under an Artificer tend to take on at least a fraction of their teacher's incredible creative skill. They help them build, give them perspective and make use of their inventions, learning how to care for them and mimic them. They almost never reach the sheer skill of the Artificer, but they become creators and researchers by themselves.

That's about it mostly. Karnas has had his city develop so incredibly because he has the single most brilliant Artificer alive in his employ.

Here be the character sheet.

• Name: What are you known as, including all titles and nicknames.
• Age: How long since you were born into the world?
• Gender: Male, female, none, both, other?
• Species / Class: Specify your species and playing class. For dragons, say your color and race of your humanoid form. For sorcerers, say you're a sorcerer, which species did you incarnate as and the color of your magic. For Sacred Arm users, say you're a sacred arm user and your species. For Heroes, just your race.
• Appearance: Please describe all relevant appearances your character might possess.
• Personality: Please describe your character's way of thinking, emotions, motivations and how they are in general.
• Skills: Describe your skills over here. What can you do, how do you fight, what do you know, what magic you have access to, what are your specialties, etc.
• Assets: What do you own? What do you fight with? What do you carry with you? Where do you live?
  • Sacred Arm: Write the name of your sacred arm, how does it look like and what does it do.
• Bio: What has your character done with their life so far?

Character list by the helpful Kiri!

• Sophia Zoe Caerias, played by Daltar
• Gerrard Eiding, played by Taco
• Donatus, played by Stratofarius
• Lann, The Dark Crest Knight of Colhen, played by Aevum
• Loren of the Wood's Embrace, played by Moerin
• Firock Finion, played by Firock Finion
• Elizabeth Wren, played by Kiri Ame
• Corbin Bulbarak, played by Doctor Thunder
• Arcaros, the Golem Lord, played by Savato
• Atheli the Ebon Blade, played by Runekn
• Talia Al-Jazari, played by Saturn
• Arxis, played by Ninja 2634
• Dagroth Bloodstorm, played by Nman
• Icarus, played by biomechtraveler
• Bryn, played by Fauxlosophe
• Auhsed Drentic, Lehen Serrani, Cecelia Cruz, Sennal O'Hara and a tank, all played by Parable
• Nasira, the Silver Knight of Saoirse, played by Starbound 2
• Kurogane Ichiro, played by Grey Star
• Arvel Tamerlane, played by mantlemask
• Mak'kal Kinslayer Flame-touched of the Ironclaw clan, played by Pyrite
• Brennan Dolgain Eingalesh, played by Sonof Melon Head
• Prometh, played by Theodore Hastings
• Sir Leonard Dire-Shot, played by goodisgood
• Father Mortimus Haven, played by The Malignancy (w/o Sacred Arm)
• Asvel, the Azure Soreress, the Witch of Veldin, played by Rapier
• Lihtu, Little One, played by Red Savant

edited 1st Mar '13 10:59:05 AM by daltar

I express interest, but only if you can actually keep this one going for a significant length of time >.>

Might be interested.

Interesting. Will consider.

Hmmm... Interesting. If I can think of anything, then I might give this a try.

Expressing possible interrest.

I am also interested.

You have my interest. Thinking of using an idea from my Blood of the Divine character.

Fuck yeah

Expression of interest stated.

WOO!~

Interest noted

Yes please, apocalyptic works are my cup of tea!

As well, a interest.

I'll get in the end of the line.

Thank you very much everyone for your interest!

Unfortunately, I had a busy day today, so I am unable to complete the Signups, but at the very least I shall add a bit about the four alternatives for roles you may play.

— Dragons —

Dragons, as mentioned, are Nature's answer to the Darkness taking over the land. There might be bigger beasts and monsters, but a fully grown dragon is pound for pound the most powerful beast in creation. Their powerful wings allow them to fly, they have access to magic while having a natural resistance to it, they have powerful breath weapons and they are all around living engines of destruction with their powerful muscles, razor sharp teeth, horns, claws and tails.

They come in a variety of species which are most easily distinguished by their color with Red Dragons breathing Fire and being generally having the most physical strength of them all, Black Dragons having the powerful breath of Acid and being incredibly adept at surviving underwater, Blue Dragons breathe Lightning and are good fliers and burrowers, White Dragons breathe Ice and are able to survive the coldest temperatures as well as being the most physically resilient of the dragon species and Green Dragons having a breath of magical force and are the most attuned to weaving magic as well as having a stronger capability to use a natural camouflage.

It usually takes a dragon about half a century to come into their full power, however, the dragon eggs scattered on the earth by Nature itself are of a purer breed which grow into their power faster. While still being far away from their full capabilities after only living for thirty years tops, these Dragons are already incredibly powerful beings around the size of a cottage. The eggs have all been placed where some sentient being will find them... and from their example and care they will learn for good or ill.

— Sorcerers —

The Sorcerers are the answer of the Arcane Power to the threat posed by the Dark Tyrant. Created from the source of all mana, these new spirits are released with boundless potential into the world. They then are to wander, to learn and then to take a sentient form to interact with the physical realm.

These Sorcerers will be of the most powerful spellcasters to ever draw breath. While the Wizards of the world are usually bound by rituals, formulas and spells in order to draw the power of the Arcane, the Sorcerers have no such restrictions. Being spirits of pure magic, they draw upon it naturally and creatively to affect the world around them. The only restriction upon them, lies on what they most developed their talents in their formative years as they first took form on the world. Thus, while all of the Sorcerers could create barriers of magic, the one who spent his first years creating shield of energy to protect himself would have a great affinity with this feat and the barriers of his fellow Sorcerers would not compare to those of his.

Finally, all Sorcerers are represented by a color. Their magical auras, their mana, and the tone of their magical energy will most of the time be of that one color unless the effect of the spell itself is of a different one. Thus, a Green Sorcerer would not inherently create green colored water, though his aura will glow green when he is performing his magic.

— Sacred Arms —

The Sacred Arms are the final gift of the Deities of Aldaris to the Mortals fighting the Shadows. These items are heavily enchanted weapons meant to battle evil, with incredible magical properties and effects imbued by the myriad of Goodly Deities of the land. All of these are secured in a variety of locations, going from mystic forgotten ruins, to vaults appearing in the middle of wilderness and cavern complexes deep in the land. To get to them, challenges must be overcome, the nature of which is as varied as the Gods which created them.

Most of these are holy weapons, taking the forms of swords, axes, lances, bows or any other possible armament, though there are some with more exotic forms like armors or accessories.

What is true to all of the Sacred Arms is that after beating the challenges required glance at these those laying their hands on them will be changed forever more. The bearers of these Arms will become more than they were before, will not be plagued with age or disease and will have their physical capabilities improved. Some might also experience changes to their form, but these changes are always benign and accepted by the wielder.

— The Heroes of Aldaris —

And for this final role... there are the Heroes of Aldaris, those who fight for freedom and good without being born dragons, without the natural magic of the Sorcerers or the Sacred Arms to bear. Those who use none of the new weapons provided for the fight against Karnas but instead battle as the heroes of old did.

These people take a wide variety of forms, with many different talents and specializations. After all, Aldaris always was a land of great diversity. Be they one of the great Artificers, gifted with the ability to build and use all sorts of technology, to create and innovate in ways few can understand. In the past, the great Artificers of old created wondrous weapons of power, created great, giant, metal suits to clash into battle and many other wonders.

Or perhaps one of the great Wizards of the Aldaris might step into the fray, wielding the old rule based magic that has been passed down his order for centuries, perfected and refined each spell into art.

From the daring leader of the Rebellion, to the Monster of the Wilds, to the Warrior Clans, the Wizards, the Artificers, the Adventurers, the Dwarven lords, Elven kingdoms, Orc Warchiefs and the Divine Orders and many others... there are a lot of powers which have yet to be broken by the Dark Emperor.

If anyone has a comment, doubt, suggestion or question about these four classes, please do not hesitate to voice them!

Also, one final detail. This game will mostly be meant as an Epic, with a very dire situation and people who fight for the only hope for a good future in Aldaris. As such, even if there are to be moments of levity and humor, I expect characters to be played straight. No subversions, joke characters and parodies will be accepted in an effort to maintain a certain mood and ambiance for the RP.

edited 31st Dec '12 2:04:51 AM by daltar

Question. Are these dragons humanoid, or capable of assuming a human form? It's kind of weird otherwise... (considering humans respond more positively to characters if they appear human like them, a fact that remains true in both fiction and real life). Also, are the Red dragons frail, like Glass Cannons, or are the White dragons just that ridiculously durable?

An Epic tale?

I think I can manage then.

How long should the sorcerers have existed?

The second option would up the Super Weight of not only the dragons, but also everything else to compensate.

Pick the second option, daltar.

Will think about it.

I second this question. Would a dragon be able to have a human form (for walking around and small battles), a half-human half-dragon form, and a dragon form?

Would our dragons already be old and strong, or new and on their way to being strong? If they have a humanoid form, do they age in that form?

Dragons are capable of adopting a fully humanoid form, one on which they have wings, horns, claws and the such and finally their fully draconic form.

While they are born in their dragon forms, by around five or seven years alive they should be able to take on humanoid form. There is some degree of control over the humanoid form the dragons take as shapeshifters, for instance they can more or less decide the age of their humanoid form but aside from that and a few cosmetic changes, their humanoid form remains a constant. If your dragon has takes the form of a stout dwarf, he won't appear the next day as a nimble elven gentleman. The exception are the more magically inclined Green Dragons which can freely alter the form of their humanoid guise.

As for the question of Reds... They are not exactly Glass Cannons, but indeed they can't take blows as well as their cousins. The Black Dragons would be the Jack of All Trades of the species, with balanced speed, strength, resilience and the such. White dragons are slightly slower than their brethren but their scales are a lot stronger and as a whole they can take blows better than anyone. Blues are the fastest and most mobile of the lot, but they are also not that physically strong and a bit fragile. The Greens are the among the most squishy as far as dragons go (only more resilient than the Blues), but they overcome this with their ability for stealth, deception and magical mastery.

I already got a character planned then. Thanks for answering the questions, daltar, this looks like it'll be fuuuun.