Hero's Arms, Hero's Heart - Fantasy Roleplay [Brainstorming/Signups]

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You all know the story: A peaceful and idyllic land, full of happy and hardworking people and ruled by kind and just monarchs, is suddenly laid siege by the forces of Darkness, led by a cruel Dark Lord. Storm clouds overshadow the land as the armies of darkness march forth from the jagged mountains to the east, pillaging and laying waste to villages in their path. It appears no one can stop them... until a lone Hero rises from humble beginnings to face the onslaught.

Growing ever stronger, the Hero faces challenges that would break lesser warriors, and gains new arms and armor from each triumph. With the Gods' divine weapons - the sword Infinity Star, the spear Mirage, the Brimstone Bow, and the hammer Judgement of Heaven and Earth - the Hero slays hideous monsters and creatures of darkness, resurrected from the myths of old by the Dark Lord's might. With their divine favors - the shield Nidhoggr's Maw, the armor Muddy Crystal, the Shifting Cape of Salazar and the amulet Frozen Star - the Hero protects the weak and oppressed from those who would harm them. With every battle, their power grows as well, adding to the Hero's burgeoning legend.

As time passes, the Hero slows, then stems, then pushes back the tide of war. Finally penetrating the heart of darkness, fighting alone to the dark citadel itself, the Hero comes face to face with the Dark Lord himself... and falls, defeated in a single cowardly blow. With no one left to stop him, the Dark Lord redoubles his assault on the kingdom, and in a single short year, the capital falls. The war is over, and Darkness has won.

However... the story doesn't end here. In fact, here is where our story begins. A hundred years later, deep in the abandoned Citadel of Darkness, something strange and wondrous occurs. The Hero's armaments and divine weapons, steeped in a century's worth of powerful magic, are brought to life to carry on the dying will of their fallen owner. Given human forms, and armed with the items that house their souls, these eight - strangers to each other and the world - must work together as they did once before to undo the horrors of the Dark Lord's reign, avenge the Hero, and carve their own niches in the annals of legend.

Hero's Arms, Hero's Heart

Hey, folks! This will be a semi-structured, middling-high fantasy roleplay, with limited signups. Players will choose one of the eight pieces of the Hero's gear, listed above, and create their character based on their chosen item. Playing as these eight unique souls, you will work together to face monsters, overcome challenges, and eventually avenge the Hero by slaying the Dark Lord in the corrupted former capital of the Kingdom.

The Arms

As you may have noticed above, the eight pieces of the Hero's gear aren't elaborated on very much. This is to give you the most freedom possible in planning your characters. When creating your character, you will also create their weapon form, name and origin; these are legendary arms and artifacts, and they have all ties to elemental forces, powerful beasts, or even Gods. While exposure to the Hero's magic is what animated them, the dark magic of the Citadel has worn them down in power over the hundred years they've lain dormant, and at first you will be limited to pale shadows of your true powers and abilities; that said, every player may choose one magical ability that their innate power gives them access to at the start of the adventure.

I encourage you all to find an aesthetic and power that fits well with your preferred playstyle and your character concept, as well as with the nature of your chosen item. Convincing me that the Sword exudes a magical forcefield will take more effort than a sword beam, but the sky's the limit! Go wild and surprise me. If you're blanking on a concept and need a helping hand, I have a few stock names and powers you can use either wholesale or simply as inspiration.

The Heart

It's the Hero's dying will that animates the Arms, and as such all of them possess a desire for revenge against the Dark Lord; aside from that, though, your characters are blank slates. The appearance and legend of your chosen item should influence your character design, as the characters' souls are actually housed inside their item 'bodies' and will be required to wear or carry them at all times, or otherwise stay within a certain radius.

Your characters may 'awaken' at any location in or nearby the city of Lovak, the closest city to the Dark Lord's abandoned Citadel. The magic that animated the Arms allowed them to customize their own appearances, knowledge and skill sets - in other words, with the exception of the lack of a true backstory, they're essentially travelers who have come to Lovak, with basic working knowledge of society, money, et cetera, at least to an average degree. At the beginning of the game, your two objectives are to meet up with the other Arms and find the body of the Hero.

Signups

Signups will be limited to eight, as there are only eight Arms. Priority will play some part in deciding which of two signups for the same Arm I accept, but it's not a deciding factor unless I honestly can't choose short of flipping a coin.

Accepted Characters
Infinite Paragon: Brimstone Bow
Stratofarius: Shifting Cape of Salazar
Hasame: Muddy Crystal (Armor)
goodisgood: Nidhoggr's Maw (Shield)
clawthewolf: Infinity Star (Sword)
Pyrite: Judgement of Heaven and Earth (Hammer)
Karrin Blue: The Frozen Star (Amulet)
daltar: Mirage (Spear)

If you guys have any questions, comments, or suggestions, I'd love to hear them! Hope you all enjoy.

edited 25th Jun '13 3:53:16 AM by RedSavant

Uh, I'm interested. I'm thinking about playing the Cape as a suave gentleman, or the Hammer as a boisterous "punching first, questions later" type of guy.

Will either of them be wearing a shirt? =)

Sounds good, man. Glad to have you on board!

Sooo want to take the Bow.

Question, though. Whoever picks the Armor will just be wearing that, I assume, but could we justify in some form characters who are not the Armor having armor, albeit regular, non-magical/non-heroic armor? I guess what i'm asking is, are the other seven of us in regular clothes, light armor only, etc.?

You can all scavenge, find or buy any other gear you like, but at the beginning of the game, none of it's anything more than what would be reasonable and expected for a traveler, generally, or for whatever backstory you choose. As a general rule of thumb, if you're standing out for any reason, gearwise, aside from your specific Arm, you should consider toning that particular piece down.

Ha he hi ho hu.

... no, he won't.

Aww dang, i was writing up my bow app then saw that someone wanted it. I'll go for the armor then

Potential interest for the Spear.

I'm interested in the Amulet, but can't think of a power to give it yet.

Arm: Armor

Name (Item): Muddy Crystal

Appearance:

• Head: The helmet is blocky, to say the least. On the top of the head, it is a flat, slightly tilted slab, technically. The sides of the head are really the same as the top, just that near the ends, they curve outwards. It's made out of very dark crystal, and sometimes, if you look into it, you can see swirls of brighter colors. In the front, all the slabs curve inwards and form a dome-like shape, sometimes jutting out, or flattening, looking kind've like a crystal.

• Shoulders: Think of the Saiyan suit (I think that's what it's called) that Nappa was wearing in DBZ, but angular, sharp, and worn-down.

• Torso: It has a small collar connected to the back of the chestplate, and on the front are indents that cave in on the ribs slightly. Otherwise, it's flat.

• Legs: And lastly, for the legs it's just a blocky outer shell of the legs. Think of your legs, but blocky, and kinda bigger than your actual legs.
  • Ridden all across the armor are small lines, not cracks but lines. They seem to be randomly placed.
  • All of the armor closely hugs the skin, for maximum mobility.

Power: Weight Distribution/Change - Can either make himself light, or heavy, depending on situation.

Name (Alias): Artin Gale

Age: 21

Sex: Male

Race: Human

Appearance: Artin is a big guy, standing at 6"3 and could be described as a buff fat....look up Gao from Eyeshield 21. He's like that, but a tad thinner. He wears a black bandana on his head that covers hair and he has a blocky face, very angular, with almost not cuts or bruises. Save for the one on his bottom lip. He has tall, wild, black hair, never kept in anyway so it just goes everywhere it feels. He has a dark skin tone that makes his light brown eyebrows barely noticeable on his face. He wears very thin clothing, a simple worn out tunic and pants. Though, over his pants, he wears the leggings to Muddy Crystal. All in all, he's a pretty intimidating guy.

Personality: He prefers defense over offense, which would be expected. Artin is a boisterous guy, seemingly dickish. Though under all of his annoying antics: Messing with strangers and friends alike, always loud and energetic, being ridiculously stubborn, is a person who feels obligated to protect anyone in need. He's always laughing, either at someone or with, and never knows his own strength, so people watch out, because you may be entering a world of hurt.

Bio: He never really gave time to think of one, actually. So what he tells is that he guards important people. Happily for him, that's very believable.

Gear:

• Muddy Crystal
• Broadsword (He never really uses it. He's more of a hand to hand type of guy)
• For food and other items alike, he normally just gets what he sees
• A big cloth wrapped in a bigger cloth that holds his unworn armor pieces.

edited 23rd Jun '13 6:02:00 AM by Hasame

DOUBLE EDIT: Okay, since claw wants the Sword and good wants the Shield, I'll reserve the choice that Strat doesn't take.

edited 22nd Jun '13 10:18:46 AM by Pyrite

• Arm:Sword
• Name (Item): Infinity Star.
• Appearance: A simple and worn long sword, its blade a pure white.
• Power:Coat itself in shining energy that increases the power and range of attacks.

• Name (Alias): Astrum.
• Age: 20-ish.
• Sex: Male.
• Race: Human.
• Appearance: "Hello.".
• Personality: A being of justice always aiming to do the righteus thing who still is a bit naive, seeing things more in black and white rather than shades of grey. Sometimes however it seems like he finds injustice where there is none, just to get the chance of tasting blood again.
• Bio: Astrum believes himself to be some sort of nobility, only he does not know from where and as such he usually just comes up with titles and the like

edited 25th Jun '13 2:35:54 PM by clawthewolf

Whoa, suddenly a wave of interest! Thanks for coming out, folks.

Anyone have any questions so far?

For the power, would it be something obvious? Like since i'm going for Armor, i chose weight distribution, not the most orthodox thing.

And for armor, in...armor form, would I go on someone?

I'm going to lay a claim on the shield. I'm thinking of a sort of Viking style character, but I'll work on it.

• Do we define the item's final power levels, or is that your job?
• Is there anything in particular to note about the world that makes it different from the standard medieval fantasy setting? What about Lovak?
  • How far has technology progressed in the 100 years? Firearms?

EDIT: As posted above: Okay, since claw wants the Sword and good wants the Shield, I'll reserve the choice that Strat doesn't take.

edited 22nd Jun '13 10:19:11 AM by Pyrite

@Hasame: The choice of power is up to you, but should be something that could theoretically provide someone with an advantage in combat - specifically, in the case of Armor, in defense. Making oneself heavier or lighter works well, actually; it would allow a Hero to take heavy blows and not be moved, or allow him to be very mobile.

Hm... that's a very good question, actually. Everyone: You essentially have the choice of two forms, which every Arm can switch between at will (though at first switching too often might tire you out or something): your item form and your human form. Item form should be considered your 'real' form; it's the less stressful form of the two to be in, and if your human body is knocked out or killed, you will be safe, or at least alive, in your item. Once you grow stronger, you will be able to manage limited movement in your item forms. Basically, Hasame - yes, if you want to move around, say, at night while your character is resting.

@Pyrite: I'd like it to be a cooperative thing. =) Of course I'll maintain final discretion, but I'm still banging out power levels and such myself.

And, part 2: The level of technology is about at the late-1400s, early-1500s, Age of Exploration level. Firearms have just recently started to be used on the battlefield; they're flintlocks, clumsy and inaccurate, but deadly. Still very much in the 'give as many as you can to your troops and fill the air with lead' stage, though, rather than any sort of sharpshooting. They're definitely new since the Arms were last used in combat, as well.

As for the setting itself... hm. Well, like I said, most of the humanoid races are at peace with each other, through common misery if nothing else. In a general sense, animal and nature gods roam the countryside, or they did; the ones that've survived the Dark Lord's invasion tend to lay low nowadays. They're gods in the sense of the boar god from Princess Mononoke or the Colossi - huge, ancient and powerful parts of nature, but vulnerable, even if only in theory. Other, more powerful gods also exist - gods for concepts, like the Hunt or Fire or things like that.

Sorry, it's about 2:30AM here, so my apologies if something doesn't make sense or is explained inadequately. =)

Since I can't think of anything, feel free to take the Amulet if you want to.
Should I think of something, I'll be back.

For Amulet, I would naturally think of some passive protective spell....or something or other.

Sorry for double post.

This armor s coming out cool looking and all but, I don't know if it would fit with the setting. Can i make the armor anything i want? Or should it have some certain look to it?

Hm... if possible, I'd prefer a fairly standard medieval feel - Dark Souls, Skyrim, that sort of thing. The cosmology style may be ri influenced heavily by Japanese myths and Shinto, but the aesthetic is more Western than anything.

EDIT: And with that, I'm headed to bed. See you all (and all your questions, oh dear) tomorrow!

edited 22nd Jun '13 11:21:42 AM by RedSavant

Interest on Spear.

Aw dang...I was making a really cool head. Well, i'll just describe it, since i don't know how to draw medieval armor.

Hmmm... Interested, but there's a lot of other stuff I'm working on at the moment, so... We'll see.

Sorry, the character I intended to make was Viking inspired. That's more Early Middle Age than what we have here. The shield is up for grabs then, best o' luck.