Sunfall - Tropical Island Fantasy Interest Check/Worldbuilding

Tried this idea once before, but I think it wasn't formed enough to sustain itself, so I want to get player input on it before I start the signup.

Also, Taco is my Co-GM.

A fantasy RP, in the context of a completely tropical setting, and the effect that has on the races, the flora, and the fauna. Sun, sand, jungles, pirates and strange beasts. All things to look forward here. Here is the signup to do some world building, show off the playable races and brainstorm idea with people who may be interested.

The setting is basically envisioned as a large chain of dozens of big islands, with lots of tiny islands around too, made up of these different fantasy races with their own agendas and goals. The RP would most likely be adventure based, following a group of players, led on different objectives and goals as a group. Those goals could obviously change as the group does, and based on the decisions they make together.

The original idea was to set it around a time modeled after the 1600s, maybe with a slightly clockwork influence. But, it is possible it could be set in a more modern time. I'm not sure which you guys would want more. But, the tropical setting is the important influence, and wills a lot of the environment and politics and adventures we would go on.

There are also plenty of monsters on the islands, like Colossal Butterflies, Spidersnakes, Panthers that can turn invisible in the shadows, and large elemental island feathered Dragons that would be really important to the setting.

That was the basic idea. I still want to flesh some things out, like the setting, the specifics of the races, like their abilities and cultures and history. What do you guys think?

edited 9th Aug '15 1:15:00 AM by Saturn

Ah, I remember this. Let me see if I can dig up my old character. If not I'll make a new one.

Interested in this one. I love the idea of the Sharkin.

I really like it! I'd personally prefer a more modern setting, but I wouldn't mind 1600s too much.

I have an idea: Sea-Cucumber Goblins!

I'm leaning a more modern setting. I like how interesting something like that could be. The Tropical part is the most important.

might make an avian.

Seconded. Also slug men. Creepy ones that do necromancy.

edited 9th Aug '15 7:07:03 PM by HeroicSociopath

I also vote modern setting, although we could have isolated pockets of ancient ruins that stood over several millennia or such.

Now imagining Tiki running tourist traps, if only to minimize violent conflict.

Me personally? I do prefer like older time periods, simply because it makes society more complex and creative and violent towards one another. This is your game though, so if you do want to a modern day period, I'll be fine with it.

I'm definitely doing a Sharkfin, but I think I should ask what kind of story do you have in mind?

I'm in agreement with Saturn and the rest of you guys, a modern setting sounds good.

Interest. Probably going to make an elf, avian, or tiki.

Okay, going with modern setting.

And I'm getting some inspirations, in terms of plot and our main objectives. Taco and I have ideas for quite a few arcs, but since we are doing a modern setting, I'm thinking of going totally MGS on the idea, and having us be a Special Ops team, doing missions (paid, of course), all around the islands. Having it in a modern setting allows for more character freedom, as well as a much wider variation of potential plots, even if the 1600s wasn't exactly super locked-in and stifling.

So, there will be a lot more potential here, and I'll have to work out some specifics of the races, if it's going to be a modern setting.

Keep the ideas and suggestions coming.

I'm not personally a fan of spec ops type affairs, if only because it kinda forces players to have the kind of character who would join that sort of thing. Maybe just a group of people hired for that kind of thing, but not necessarily tied to any government?

Of course, I'm just thinking aloud here.

It was just the initial idea. Someone else told me they weren't a fan either. I'm willing to do something else.

I just don't know how we can keep the characters going on adventures if it's super "casual".

Yeah, this is another problem with the modern day; there's not a lot you can do. Need to go save someone important? There are already special forces meant to do that. Need to gather some kind of arcane information? Pretty sure the internet would already have it.

I mean, the Modern day Fantasy can be done, and done creatively, but it's a lot harder then the 1600's.

I'm thinking that a combination of the monsters outside civilization and the people inside it means that society has stayed largely fractured, though not outright feudal. Modern tech, politics, etcetera, but, since it's a bitch and a half to go through a jungle or cross a strait where even the bugs can beat you up, there's little globalization or widespread infrastructure, meaning little in the way of a formalized military outside of localized city defense forces paid by the local government of a given city-state. Venturing out of the city to get shit done would require diminishing the city's forces, so hiring troubleshooters not unlike a Shadowrunner or a Witcher for temporary work is probably more cost-effective. If you want to be bankrolled do-gooders, you'd be filling a niche that governmental forces cannot safely fill.

And on another topic, that of worldbuilding: one idea I had was to answer all questions on the setting with "I dunno, what do you think?" Descriptions of what each race/culture can do is extremely vague; if you want to know more about it, answer the question yourself.

I would have preferred an 1800s maybe steam punk setting but I can live with modern. By Spec Ops do you mean working for a specific government or more of a mercenary group? Would prefer the latter.

Just because it's modern day doesn't necessarily mean they have all the tech we have. Maybe they're more advanced in some ares, but less in others. Like, I read somewhere that if we budgeted as much money for space travel research as we do for telecommunications, we'd be able to go to the moon in ten minutes. Iunno if it's true or not, but maybe they just don't have the same things we do, and they have some things we don't. Like chainsaw swords and underwater arcologies.

edited 10th Aug '15 5:45:34 PM by HeroicSociopath

Here, brief Skype conversation from awhile ago saved for reference.

I'd like it if more people who have posted in this thread would try to suggest things, because I want to come to a compromise and it's difficult to write up what exactly I should do, when I don't know what people want.

Perhaps we should think of realistic conflicts each race has with each other?

We already know the Merfin and Sharkin dislike each other. Perhaps there is tension for control of water ways?

Colonization and imperialism has always been a very present force in real-world tropical cultures and in the fiction surrounding them, if you guys were interested we could go into that.

Is there a greater world out there, with continents and such, or is it a world with only islands? Or are we completely disconnected from it somehow, and don't know? Just wondering because of what Taco said.

Basically, half the world has large land and empires, while the other half is almost completely water, with dots of islands. Sunfall would be set on that half. It's extremely difficult to get to the other side, due to weather and giant sea creatures and things like that.