Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Zade 10-17-03, 01:37 AM	Hello everyone, after a long summer (and 9 weeks of school) i've decided to start rping again. Though i don't feel like playing dnd (yeah i know, what's wrong with me) i would still like some help on a background for a forum based rp my friend has started. So what i want is either a background (oh please could someone write one for me i'm so overly busy [school sucks] and i've resently hit writers block) or just ideas which sound/seem neat and/or inventive. Also, thanks in advance to anyone (and everyone) who gives me a hand with this. p.s. this is somewhat long, i guess, so bare with me? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This is a general world description: Twilight Requim, the revival (meaning it's back from the dead and has been updated, it was originally on the GameFAQS board but it died after about a month) This is an RP that takes place in an alternate universe, it's sort of like a mix between a vampire RP and an FF7 RP, but before you stop reading finish the rest. The Earth's resources have been nearly depleted and widespread desertification along with destruction of the ozone layer has led to a widespread famine, killing off a great deal of the Earth's population. Fossil-fuels are more rare than diamonds and, due to a devastating war where drilling weapons which disabled nuclear power were used(to disable nuclear weapons), the world mainly relied on solar energy. However, a problem occured. Due to the increased temperature heating the oceans, wild storms and natural disasters began to devastate what was left of civilization. The gathering of solar energy was insufficient and was nearly useless because of their fragile structure which the storms wrecked. By some miracle, a group of scientists who had made the first drilling weapons had discovered a way to harness the energy of Earth's natural heat. Not only this, but they could also draw rich minerals from the Earth similar to ash from a volcano. This technology revolved around two things, a new element which appears in an absolutely pure crystal form which they named "Twilight" due to it's strange color which was especially apparent near magma. They found that if they drilled deep into the earth and used "Twilight" as a medium, they could convert the heat into useful energy. The world of humans in general is beginning to recover because of this, and hostilities between them stopped. The fifty-year war between the three kingdoms finally ended in a temporary truce, none having the resources to continue their battle. Well, now for a less organized setting description Remember that "Twilight" that can harness the Earth's energy? Well it has an interesting side effect as well. With a specially manufactured glove containing this element, a human can gain energy, strength, and even regenerate by attacking another human with it. An even stranger effect is when a person uses it on an animal, they occasionally remain almost the same with increased abilities, but more often than not they gain body parts from the animals themselves. The people who drain from others are considered psycopaths, murderers, sadists, heathens, and in general rejected from society. In some places there are even special squads which hunt down these "beasts" because they are considered a danger to the public. When a person has drained another they have murdered them and may develop a taste for more. When someone absorbs a beast their instincts may override their rationality, creating a powerful, violent animal. The people that meld with others are officially known as "Mergers", but are also commonly called "vamps", "monsters", "freaks", etc. Scientists have yet to discover why this happens, or even how "Twilight" accomplishes it's main task. Well now to the three kingdoms. Klein Empire Kindest of the three, and also the smallest. Joined the war to protect innocents from being harmed. Their country is approximately the size of Europe. The government is a pure monarchy. Pink is their color. This is the place where Twilight was discovered. The people here are very acceptive and try to reform Mergers rather than kill them. Despite their small size, their army was fierece, though now it's been significantly weakened. Mergers often serve as specialists in their army and are highly respected, a great incentive for Mergers to "fight for the good." They're your stereotypical pacifists that want to deal with things using diplomacy........but carry guns just in case. Second Rome A militant nation that you could compare to a strict dictatorship mixed with communism. Second Rome is about the size of Russia and China together. They believe that the world needs to be healed and energy conserved, also for "Twilight" to be used only as much as absolutely necessary until it was understood how it worked. Nuclear energy had taught them everything comes with a price. Second Rome began in Europe and conquered areas by leaps and bounds, putting strict restrictions on just about everything. They kill Mergers unconditionally, even those that have performed it as a medical operation. Their methods may be harsh, but their goal is noble. Free Earth Federation Basically a group of nations banded together to oppose Second Rome. Think of this as the U.N. They squabble endlessly, aren't disciplined, and waste their resources. Despite this, their pure size allows them to contend with the others. Their principles and laws vary with each region, but they're all avid believers in "freedom". Both their methods and goals are questionable. Small update: There are neutral areas set aside during the treaty where none of the factions are allowed to go. As usual, it's turned into a breeding ground for outlaws. In more than a few areas, rain is highly acidic, be careful of it. Also, there are some smaller, more peaceful nations in the Free Earth Federation that only contribute to the effort with funding. Merger abilities change your DNA, so yes, they are inheritable, but the change is to such an extent that you're considered a different species than human most of the time. This means two mergers of more or less the same type have to be parents of a child born with abilities. If you're wondering about transportation, there are trains and airships (they're more like airships than airplanes....just because that's cool), but they're so costly that only the extremely rich, important government officials, or the military can use them. If you want a legged transport, feel free to have anything from a small dragon to a chocobo, as long as it isn't overly powerful. Also, there are international bounties on people that are considered an indiscriminatory threat, these are mostly powerful bandits and mergers. Lastly, there is a military force present in almost every town to keep the peace in an unsatisfied world and to protect against violent mergers. Dragons -- Well....in truth, I don't have any real reason to add dragons, but I did anyway. If you don't think it's a good idea just tell me. Anyway these dragons were produced as a result of several years of genetic alteration which greatly accelerated advent of Twilight. They're just animals and can't talk or anything, but they can be quite strong and intelligent. A few were infused with Twilight to see what the effects would be, the only case so far where Twilight has actually been used internally, and they were quite impressive. They seemed to be able to "unravel" the patterns of energy which are the basis of matter and can use this in a number of ways. Because of this unique ability, they gain nearly 100% of the energy contained by what they eat rather than the small percentage most organisms are able to use. They can heal themselves and even regenerate by using the energy like spleen cells on steroids, but what's more they can create extensions which weren't meant to be part of their body. This has led scientists to believe that dragons are extremely intelligent, able to hold complex energy patterns in their mind and apply it through the Twilight within their very cells and nerves. Because of this, dragons vary in size (from 5 feet to over 30 feet), demeanor (some are docile enough to be pets, while others are violent hunters), and ability (they range from being able to tunnel underground to flying through the air or swimming through water). There are only a few dragons captive that are being studied, because of their ability to change their body to an extent they are not only difficult to hold against their will, but can also commit suicide simply by wishing it. The most troublesome thing about dragons is that they have a craving for the Twilight stone, like a drug addict that has just been cut off. Because of this they often attack plants, shipments, and even travelling mergers. State of living: Towns -- This'll vary from place to place, but imagine a trip into the past. You'll see traces of technology here and there, but it'll be more or less like in Fedual times, though the culture will vary depending on what town you're in. These can be anywhere from quiet and peaceful to rowdy bandit cities to slums Cities -- This isn't anything like your modern cities. About as compact as places like New York, Tokyo, or Hong Kong, but more restricted and every space used to it's full advantage. You'll find power here, but not many luxuries that require it unless you're in a very high-end area in the FEF. These areas are highly militarized and protected, there's also occasionally a Twilight power plant located within the city. Military bases -- This is going to be state-of-the-art technology, architecture, etc. Only places which you can really call futuristic. and some infromation about the merger ability Merger Draining -- When draining a person or animal the Twilight only acts as a medium, the draining isn't automatic. A person's own will to live will subconsciously cause the energy to surge into them from the other person. Likewise the person being drained can reverse this affect if they have enough strength of will. Energy surges into them and changes their body. If you are simply draining another human, you gain heightened strength, senses, reflexes, and lose some mental stability, but if it's another species it's a bit more than that. The energy drained from another species will begin to change back into it's "remembered" form, often causing external and internal changes within the merger. While these are always positive transformations, they can often be terribly painful. These changes are usually more drastic if the person isn't dominating in the battle of wills, and the changes occur in a natural fashion. Some exceptionally strong people are able to isolate and manipulate the energy consciously, these are the top elite of the mergers and some of them rival even middle-class dragons. These types of people are in the top 1% and have often drained over half a dozen other subjects before reaching this power. They are almost all either actively hunted by the seperate factions or working for them. Because of all these annoying things to get around, people usually drain something which has been weakened, organisms which are already dead provide significantly less power. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ok, so now everyone has a description of the world, now for what i was thinking my character would be like. --I was thinking of a character of chinese/japanese decent, who wields a sword and is part of an elite military organization. The main goal of this organization would be to hunt, and in turn kill, mergers. --I was also thinking about being part of the "Second Rome" kingdom, since they seem to be the most militeristic and have the most hatred for Mergers. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ok, now for everyone (or anyone) who has read all of the information above (i'm hoping someone did) i'm going to provide a ruff (sort of) outline for a way that i'd like it to be...but then agian i really don't care since it's a huge favor to have someone help me with a background.... Name Age Race(Optional. If you _really_ want to be a 'classic' type of vampire or something instead of a merger, that's alright) Birth Date(Optional, month and date only) Zodiac(Optional, Chinese or Western) Height Weight Build Ethnicity Dominant hand Blood Type (optional) Equipment/Tools (This is all items, weapons, armor, etc) Homeland Allegiance "Alignment"(Optiona, very optional, in fact I'd rather you not do it.) Occupation Relations (Family, people with close ties, or connections) Appearance (picture is preferrable) Merger yes/no and specifics (optional) Talents Trademark(optional) Strength(If you can come up with a good story and play responsibly, you can be quite strong. If you can't or act irresponsibly I will ask you to leave and will completely ignore all of your posts and urge others to as well) Background Likes/Dislikes(optional) Personality(optional) I recently noticed that I have missed something that was blatantly obvious and should have been addressed earlier. How strong can you be? For those of you I've talked to you noticed how much I want to "cap" your power, or at least your current power. If you're worried about being weak or beaten by someone else, just remember that this isn't all about fighting and also that you can increase your abilities if you so desire. Anyway, to the main topic at hand, please answer these two questions. 1) How strong do you think people currently are. 2) How strong do you think they should be. As of now everyone's wanted to be far stronger than I had anticipated, some of you even want mystical powers in a slightly more realistic setting than usual Fantasy RPGs. Everything is loosely based on physics or theories, but there's still a base. A good example of something like this is RuroKen, everything has a realistic basis it's just extremely exaggerated. Two important notes -- UNLESS YOU ARE A MILITARY ELITE, THERE IS A VERY, VERY, VERY SLIM CHANCE YOU WILL BE IN POSSESSION OF A FIREARM -- A person able to use both hands equally well is extremely rare, please take note of this. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ok, well that's it, thanks in adavnce and i'd like to take this last remaining time to shout out to navii and his ability to make intresting world. Edit: added bit about strength, last minute update by the forum leader.
Zade 10-17-03, 02:36 PM	Hm, i guess i should have figured no one would really want to write a background for me -.-;. I suppose i'll have to figure something else out...thanks anyways.
eudas 10-17-03, 03:10 PM	neat setting, though. eudas
Trydan 10-18-03, 11:52 AM	Originally posted by Zade Hm, i guess i should have figured no one would really want to write a background for me Well, you didn't exactly make it easy for people. The character concept is buried in mountains of text about the world setting. For those who ploughed through the text (well done to them!) it then wasn't overly clear for what you were asking. Hmm... try reading the FAQ (see the link in my .sig). However, the concepts that you list would be a perfect starting place if you were interested in working through the procedure listed in How to create a role-playing character (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=105563).
Zade 10-20-03, 02:45 PM	Hm, perhaps your right, Trydan, the concept is buried under alot of info, most of which is confusing in some way, shape or form. Well for anyone who really wants to (maybe, just maybe there's someone?) i'm asking for a background of someone (most likly from Second Rome) who's in the military, most likly an elite group specilized in murger-hunting. But it's most likly not going to happen so....
Kalanth 10-20-03, 02:55 PM	**Gasp** Scuse me . . . I am a bit winded. . . after. . . reading that. . . post. :D Sorry, I could't think of much of anything there, I got lost in the area description and setting layout. Is there a way you could sift through and simplify it for us?:confused:
TheMightyMcClaw 10-20-03, 11:24 PM	I give you a badass. Name: Temujin Androvesky, or a similar russian name (possibly one that starts with a Z). Temujin is the original name of Genghis Khan, by the way. Age: Early twenties. Race: Human. Birth Date: The first of october. Zodiac: Not familiar with astrology, so I'll let someone else handle that. Height: 6'0. Weight: 190 lb. Build: Medium, but highly muscular. Ethnicity: Half-Russian, Half-Mongolian. I know you mentioned being Japanese or Chinese, but the Russian/Mongolian mix is a bit more unique (there are a lot of Japanese and Chinese fighting masters running around RPGs). Plus, the Mongolians and the Russians are both just dead cool. Dominant hand: Right. Blood Type (optional) Equipment/Tools (This is all items, weapons, armor, etc) You mentioned wanting to make him a swordsman.... resist the urge to give him a katana. I'm sure you've considered it, but there are a couple of things. First of all, katana-wielding modern warriors are done a lot, to the point of being an RPG cliche. And you want to be unique, right? Second, katana really aren't that cool looking (I don't want to start the endless debate on how effective katana are, so I'm just going to focus on asthetics). Even though you've got the romance of all those samurai drama, the katana is a pretty gawky weapon. The hilt is relatively huge compared to the blade. So I'd recomend a Dao (chinese broadsword). If you're not familiar, there are some good pics of them here (http://gungfu.com/cart-htm/swords_chinese_classic.htm) . Also, if you get a chance to see them in action, it's an extremely graceful and powerful weapon. They're fairly exotic, and they're also studied in modern (and assumably, futuristic) martial arts. Also, you might give him some kind of light body armor (a swordsman has to be able to move, after all) and possibly a small handgun (you said guns were rare, but you also said that he would probably be military elite). If not, you could always go with throwing knives or shuriken. Homeland: Temujin was born on a military base in Russia, but spent the early part of his life traveling the Second Roman Empire. However, after his mother died, his father retired and moved into his wife's hometown in Mongolia. Allegiance: Occupation: Merger-Hunter for the Second Roman Empire. Relations: Both his Russian father and Mongolian mother were army folk, and they're son was born on a Russian military base. His parents were not abusive, but his father was often distant from Temujin. When Temujin was eleven years old, his mother died at the hands of Klein Merger. His father grew even more distant since, leaving Temujin very much on his own. Appearance: Temujin is a tall, muscular, and fairly imposing figure. His hair, on the rare moments when it isn't tied back, falls nearly to his shoulders. His face favors his mother's people more than his father's, with a strong cast and a great deal of definition around his eyes. His skin, a light gold by nature, has been darkened by years of exposure to the elements. He typically wears black cargos and army jacket, occasionally sporting an armored vest beneath. He has never been known to own more than a single pair of functioning shoes at any time, and these have typically been hiking or army boots. He usually wears dark sunglasses, but unlike some fashion enthusiasts, he will remove them when it isn't bright out. His most notable feature, however, is the chinese broadsword he typically wears over his shoulder. Though he is highly skilled in unarmed combat, and often carries a handgun at his hip, the broadsword is his prefered mode of combat; it's also helpful for intimidation. Merger: No. Talents: Temujin has great skill with hand to hand combat. He studied Wushu, the traditional fighting arts of china, from an early age. This, combined with his military experience and family background, have made him an opponent to be respected in close quarters. In addition, he has always been athletic, a handy skill when he's been forced to hunt his prey through the deadly wilderness. Likewise, constantly having to root out Merger's in hiding combined with his own calm coolness have made him effective in the arts of gathering information and investigation. Trademark: Temujin's trademark is undoubtedly the three-foot broadsword he carries with him. Not only is he deadly with it combat, but it's very presence has served as a means to reinforce his own impressive personae. Strength: Temujin would probably be considered a force to reckon with by most. Aside from his already mentioned great physical prowess, his years of military duty have left him unafraid to hurt people who stand in his way. Background As mentioned, Temujin was born on a Roman military base in Russia. Both his Russian father and his Mongolian mother were low-ranking officers in the army at the time. As he grew up traveling from base to base constantly, Temujin never grew settled in life. He found great pleasure in the wilderness as a child, and led an athletic childhood outdoors, in spite of the dangers posed by such a world. His parents were not particularly close, but they were not negligent or abusive either. His father, particularly, interacted with his on very little. However, he always said that Temujin had "Great things ahead of him," and both parents had a quiet love for their son. When Temujin was eleven, his mother died. She was killed by a Klein Merger unit in a small skirmish. His father, at this point an acomplished officer, lost much of his energy for life. He retired from the army, and moved back to civilian life. As he had left his own hometown on poor terms, he instead moved with his son the home village of his wife. Though Temujin's father took care of him, he became more distant yet. The young Temujin, left largely to his own devices, became partially adopted by his mother's brother. Temujin's uncle taught him the art of wushu, using it as a medium to communicate with his nephew and increase his chance for survival in the world. When Temujin turned seveenteen, he wished his uncle and all but estranged father farewell to enroll in the army. He took a few tours of duty, and his military training greatly supplemented his training in traditional martial arts. Here, he found what he deemed to be his purpose in life: the destruction of Mergers. Having lost his mother to them, and being raised in a society heavily biased against them, Temujin dedicated his skills to the destruction of the 'vampires'. Likes/Dislikes: Temujin has a great like for fresh air, strong coffee, and sharp steel. He prefers cloudy days over sunny ones, but generally prefers to be outside. Obviously, he harbors a great deal of hatred for Mergers. Personality(optional) Temujin is generally cool and collected, but it is not uncommon for him to be somewhat cheery. When Temujin grows angry, he does his best not to show it, but rather to correct the source of anger, often violently. He does not make friends often, and has difficulty building long-term romantic relationships. Though he is a fairly handsome man, and has had a number of romantic trists, he has never allowed himself to fall in love; the loss of the most prominent feminine figure in his life as a child left him unable to truly grow close to someone, for fear of losing them. Well.... I hope that helps. Even if it doesn't work out for your game, I think I might use that for Shadowrun sometime.
Zade 10-21-03, 04:01 PM	Yay, someone responded with a character! The MightyMcClaw, i like the character alot. The russian/mongol is unique, and i like the general feel of the character. One question though, why use a Dao? i mean there are better swords... (i personaly like the Tai Chi sword...can't remember the actual name) aside from the intimidation effect i don't really know what makes a dao any better than a longsword...perhaps you could enlighten me?
TheMightyMcClaw 10-21-03, 06:35 PM	Thanks! I'm glad you liked the concept. I hope it works out. As for the whole bit with the swords.... I mostly recomend the Dao because I think that they're really cool and aren't used often enough. The straightsword/taichi sword is, in my opinion, not as graceful as the dao. Also, the connotations of the straightsword always struck me as more of a "gentlemen's" weapon, whereas the dao has more of a military feel (and, if I'm not mistaken, history), so it seems to fit better with a Second Roman military/Merger hunter guy.