Dragonblooded: A World-Building RP

So, after my numerous failures in running a non-Pokemon RP, I've decided to try something a little different. While a significant part of those failures was my own inattentiveness/inactivity, I'd imagine at least little bit of it is the fact that, well, my RPs can be boring. They tend to be original settings with a plot built-in--but that makes them very GM-dependent. Why should the player care about this place or that history? Couple that with the need to hide parts of that setting to make a plot surprising, and all that's left are the rather dull bare bones and near constant GM interference to reveal additional bits of the plot and/or setting.

Compare that with the near-ubiquitous academy RP: it's a simple concept, and doesn't need a lot of backstory or even an actual plot (though those that have them are even better). What matters there is the heart of RPing: pure, worthwhile, and fun character interaction, something the players are actually invested in. A good academy RP doesn't really need a GM other than to keep thing moving; we've all had our share of pages-long conversations and simple interaction.

So, this is my little experiment. While there's the usual character sign-ups, I'm also asking every player to contribute something to the setting. It could just be a little town off in the countryside, or a shining city on the coast, all the way up to a mighty empire with a long and storied history. Let's see if we can make the setting and the world just as alive to you, the players, as any of your favorite characters. All that's shared between them is one little myth that unites them all...




THE CREATION MYTH:

Before the Dawn, in the darkest and most forgotten of the Elder Days, the High Father, lord of the Sky and embodiment of wind and flame came across the Great Mother, the Land and embodiment of earth and water, in the infinity of the Void. From their joining came the avatars of Light, their first and greatest sons, Valya and Talna. In accordance with his transient and willful nature, the High Father left and returned to wandering the Void. But the Great Mother remained with her sons, nurturing them in accordance with her own nature. But the two were lonely, and so they birthed children of their own, the first and greatest of the mortal races: to lesser mortals in later Days, the sons of Valya became known as the Dragons, while the daughters of Talna became known as the Daemons. And so the Dragons and Daemons were the first and only beings to walk upon the unblemished Land, powerful with the light of their fathers within them.

But in time, the High Father returned, weary from his wandering and eager to join with the Great Mother once more. But the divine radiance of the High Father, mighty and unmerciful with the wildness of fire, threatened the mortal children of the light. Valya and Talna begged their Father to set aside his desires and so spare the Dragons and Daemons, but the High Father refused. In their desperation, the two attacked the High Father, calling upon all their might and the strength of their children. And so in a moment of vulnerability, the High Father was overcome, his physical form slain and his essence sealed within it. The High Father's body was cast down to the Earth, rending the land with his fall, before being imprisoned by the brothers. In time, the great chasms split by the High Father's fall were filled with the Great Mother's tears of sorrow and agony, raising the first ocean, the Pataric Sea.

In the trauma of the High Father's fall, both Mother and sons were wounded. The Great Mother fell into eternal slumber, while both Valya and Talna were diminished, Talna more so than his brother. With both Mother and Father dormant, it fell to the brothers to maintain and nurture the Land. As the stronger of the two, Valya became known as the Sun, and Talna the Moon. But with their fathers diminished and their attentions turned to their new duties, their children suffered and began to fade. The Daemons, children of the Moon, vanished entirely, while the children of the Sun, the Dragons, slowly dwindled to a precious few. Yet even as it seemed that mortal life would all but vanish from the Earth, the last children of the High Father and the Great Mother emerged from the Sea, where last the Sky and Land had met: men, elves, dwarves, and all the lesser mortal races.

And so, even as the last Dragons secluded themselves, new civilizations rose in their place. One among the Dragons, in his dying breaths, passed on the remnants of the divine spark within himself to mortals, blessing them with his soul's power. In time, those blessed few passed into legend, shaping the course of societies and the world with their power. As time passed, the title awarded to those so blessed changed from culture to culture and place to place--but the meaning always remained the same:

Dragonblooded.

GAMEPLAY:

This is ultimately, a very straightforward RP--all our characters do is explore the world around them and react to it. What makes this RP (hopefully) stick out is that each player is also responsible for the parts of the world they create and add to the RP. It can be as simple as pointing out a location they want to describe and think is worth going to, to engineering an entire civil war in their created location. Think of it as a player-created and player-driven Skyrim: no one conflict totally dominates the game--you don't even need to finish the main quest!

Sticking to the title, all our characters are Dragonblooded (but you can of course just make them regular beings for story's sake)--but how that manifest and what that means depends on the background you think up for them and where they come from. It might mean they become a god-king of sorts, the next chosen ruler of their local empire. Or maybe they are cast out as unnatural, a cured being in their hometown's midst. Who knows? You do.

While the fun of this RP comes from the ideas each player brings to the table, what keeps together, like in other RPs, is GM fiat and authority. If things ending up going absurdly off track--such as sitting in one tavern in some godforsaken corner of the world for 300 posts--I can interfere with my overarching plot as need be. And in order to keep you from godmodding too much, there's also a loose level system for your Dragonblooded characters; you define what your characters gain at what level in your sign-ups. I'll award levels as the RP progresses, for exploration, character growth, etc.

THE WORLD:

Here's what's been added so far:

Locations:

• Talanian Hinterlands (by Renewal) - hilly territories on the coast of the western continent, near the Pataric Sea. Surrounded by the wealthy coastal kingdoms to their east, and the fertile lands of Endal to the west, the Hinterlands are much poorer in comparison, dominated by subsistence farmers and herdsmen, and consequently have seen much bloodshed over the course of their history. For centuries the nomadic tribes that inhabited the Hinterlands have been displaced as their neighbors warred on their lands. The past few years, however, have seen a stunning reversal of their fortunes, with the rise of Alesia ker Talna, a nativeborn turned conqueror, seizing control of the HInterlands and uniting them.
• Solara Islands (by Renewal) - an ancient archipelago in the heart of the Pataric Sea, surrounded by dangerous currents and frequent whirlpools. Rocky and virtually barren, their appearance and age have earned them the nickname the Bones of the High Father. Near worthless and far from most civilization, the Islands would have been abandoned centuries ago were it not for the sole structure still standing on one of the smaller islands: the Temple Solaris, an ancient temple dedicated to worshiping Valya. The Islands are thus the center of Solar worship, and thus see steady traffic year round from pilgrims from all corners of the globe.

Factions/Cultures:

• Alesian Empire (by Renewal) - the newest empire on the western continent, forged from the conquests of its leader, Alesia ker Talna--or in the tongue of her tribe, Alesia, child of Talna. Her empire has seen rapid expansion, unchecked by any so far. But in styling herself a divine conqueror, but denying that she is Dragonblooded by claiming descent from Talna, she is regarded at best as a divisive and controversial figure--her boastful name is seen as tremendous blasphemy by many--Talna is often regarded as a minor god, often a liability to his glorious brother Valya. The Alesian Empire's tremendous growth, even as it inspires fervent loyalty from citizens of the Hinterlands, has inspired great fear and hatred from the other kingdoms of the world. Whether Alesia truly has the favor of Talna or nor has yet to be seen, with the future of her empire hanging in the balance.
• Solaris Templars (by Renewal) - as the current occupants of the Solara Islands and the Temple Solaris, the Templars claim inheritance to the ancient legacy of the Solar Cult, and thus the rightful leaders of Valya worshipers across the globe. The truth of their legacy is, of course, much thornier. The Templars have inhabited the Temple for roughly 300 years, and are merely the latest organization to occupy it: they were installed by the now defunct Endalian Empire in their war of conquest. However, in the decades since, the Templars' efforts at reconciling with mainland sects have seen them gain a measure of authority. Though their doctrine remains controversial--especially regarding their declaration that both Dragon and Daemon worship are heretical--they are somewhat well-regarded as guardians of the Temple. However, the rise of the Alesian Empire has seen active bloodshed between Alesian force and Templar knights, threatening to divide the Solar Cult even further.

RULES:

• The usual BMGf etiquette: no spamming, no tennising, no godmodding, etc. Basically, all the normal rules of RPs: play nice!
• The GM's word is law. My job is to keep things flowing smoothly. If it comes to that, my word is law.
• Respect each other's settings. The point of this RP is to explore each other's ideas. Respect it, and when it comes to facts about that player's particular setting, what they says goes.
• If you're lost, ask for help. Don't be afraid to ask for recaps--that's a key part of my job, after all.

SIGN-UPS:

Name:
Age:
Gender:
Race: Can be any race of your choosing or creation. Try to stick to fantasy races (i.e., avoid robots or extraterrestrials)

Appearance:
Personality: Detail please--a few sentences
Background: Try to include something about your character's culture/faction (see below)--they don't exist in a vacuum, after all
Hometown: Either your custom setting from below, or one already made

Location: Describe a new setting to add to the world, or one you've made for a prior character. Try to touch a little on its climate, its location in relation to other places, and its inhabitants
Culture/Faction: Elaborate on the inhabitants of your setting. Can be very simple, but detail is always a plus, especially if it's large, like a kingdom or empire

Dragonblooded: State whether or not your character is Dragonblooded, and what powers they consequently have
Class: Optional if your character is Dragonblooded, but recommended. Describe how your character fights and what they specialize in. Like everything else, can make up your own class
Level Progression: State what your character learns at what level. Levels start at 1 and go to 100. Try to make sure their not too crazy, and that they make sense in the context of their Dragonblooded powers and their class

CHARACTERS:


Any questions or clarification needed, just ask Renewal!

I'm good for it.

Name: Lorest
Age: 17
Gender: Male
Race: Human, mostly.

Appearance: 6'8. Somewhat pale skin. Hair long and held in a loose ponytail. Jagged and in eyes. Hair color is brown with white tips. Eyes are an odd heliotrope color. Has sharper than normal canines that seem to become more pronounced as he gets more emotional. Wears a low neck purple shirt with a pauldron on the left shoulder and a chest plate over the shirt.. Has a steel bracer on his right arm and wears a fingerless plated glove on his left hand. Wears a durable set of cotton pants, and has a pack slung around his shoulder. Wears bracers on both legs and steel-toed leather boots. Has a large pike strapped to his back and a couple of knives strapped in his belt.
Personality: He's quite shy for stated reasons, but will speak up and ask questions to learn about the surrounding world. He dislikes fighting and prefers to settle altercations with peaceful matters, but when a fight is unavoidable, he tries to settle the problem in as quick and permanent a way as possible.
Background: Lorest is a self-imposed exile of the Xol, due with his disagreement with the government’s increasingly isolationist tendencies. He would rather explore the world and see what it has to offer, rather than never venturing any further than his hometown. After realizing that the government's policies had become more and more extreme over time, he set out to get away from it all, and to find out what was really going on from an outside perspective. He has some connection to the ancients who lived in the forest before, but it is unknown how.
Hometown: Darthvynn

Location: The Xol includes a large forested area with underground tunnels underneath the entirety of they of the area. It's far to the north, but not so far that they get constant snowfall year-round. The Xol was once defended by a mighty creature who's identity has long been lost to time. The Xol was once a place of peace and a place where much magic lore was studied. However much has been lost over the ages of time, and only a few people outside the Xol knows it's history, and only a few select individuals know of it inside of it. Currently, many dangerous beast tend to roam the main roads to the woods, discouraging the average traveler.
Culture/Faction: The Xol Protectorate: To the world it's, the Protectorate and it's surrounding lands is ultimately peaceful, if somewhat a bit too insistent at being left alone. As it has been determined that they have no discernible weapons and are no threat, their wish has for the most part, has been acquiesced to. It is currently being ruled by the King Laikrosis the XIV, and he's of a quite similar mind of his predecessors and keeps to much of the same policy.

Dragonblooded: Yes. He can manipulate the shadows around him to either hide, or can cause them to become solid to snag or trap. He also has sight in pitch darkness, but is more likely to be blinded by bright light.
Class: A close-range Ranger. He is excellent at tracking and wood-lore, but prefers to wield a pike and get into the thick of thick of things when he does fight. His haphazard placement of armor is so he can quickly move to protect his vitals, while still moving around quickly.
Level Progression: I am currently unsure what to put here, but this will be solved shortly.

Name: Will
Age: 16
Gender: Male
Race: Elf

Appearance:Will is a moderately handsome young man who stands at 5,7 and weighs 120 lbs. His frame is fairly slender, and he isn't one to rely a lot on brute strength. He has pale white skin and straight silver hair with long bangs. His eyes are a cool icy blue, with a passionate sparkle in them, and pointed ears. He wears a pale blue shirt with a black pants and simple leather loafers.

Personality: Will is a passionate teenager who enjoys freedom, he hates being told what to do, and being controlled by others. He's playful, and a bit of a joker, and doesn't do a lot when not interested. Despite this, he's a kind hearted guy who can be quite personable and chivalrous. Will is also fairly resourceful and willing to put his life on the line for his friends.

Background: Will lives alone in the deep Lumina Forest, acting as it's guardian and protecter. His mother had died at a young age, and his father was a controlling man, who never let Will have any free will. Refusing to be his puppet anymore, he ran away from his hometown of Nimue Village, and left to the nearby Lumina Woods. People rarely entered there, because it was thought to be haunted by ghosts. When there, Will had discovered small woodland creatures called Chlorophylites, small wooden creatures with the ability to use photosynthesis. Befriending these creatures, Will became their guardian and protecter, often scaring away humans who had wandered into Lumina Woods. At the age, of 10, Will had discovered that he had a strange gift. He could soar through the air, like someone swimming through water. He had also started learning the art of magic and flight, and he was then rumored by the nearby villagers as The Silver Ghost because of his silver hair.

Hometown: Nimue Village, (Formerly) Lumina Forest (Curenty)

Location: Lumina Woods, a woodland where light filters through, it has a variety of plants and mushrooms, along with small ponds scattered through out. Lumina Woods is a sight to behold at night as the flowers start to glow with a beautiful blue light, being labeled as Heaven's Mirror because the way the mimic the stars. They have another name though, Death Lamps, like the lantern that leads souls to the afterlife. It is populated by the Chlorophylites.

Nimue village is small village located a half a mile south of Lumina Woods. It located next to large lake known as Floria, and is said to inhabit the water spirit, Nimue. They regaurd her as a deity and worship her with the water ceremony every full moon. Nimue village is you're typical lakeside village, inhabited by elves and humans.

Culture/Faction: Chlorophylites are woodland creatures, they are are made of wood and have faces that look like someone carved them in with a knife. They live in tree houses, and there lead by the the Lumina Elder, (Picked by election). The Chlorophylite clan only has 20 members, and they reproduce by planting seeds durring the Forrest Ceremony, a ceremony lead by the Chlorophylite Elder where seeds are blessed to grow into the woodland children. There week physically, but there magic aptitude is high, being able to control and manipulate plants. There also capable of Photosynthesis.

Nimue Village is named after the water spirit Nimue, who is said to reside in the nearby Lake Floria. She is said to be a loving spirit who has the ability to bring rain and life. Water from Lake Floria has healing capabilities, and is used as medicine in Nimue Village. It's a small village with a population of about 50, mostly made up elves and humans. There lead by a mayor who is elected by vote every 2 years.

Dragonblooded: Yes, Will has the ability to fly (Sorta like Peter Pan) Being able to do so with ease and grace. Will also has high magic aptitudes, prefering to use elemental sorcery focusing mostly on Light, Lightning, Nature, Fire, and Wind. When fighting, Will uses a combination of Offensive Magic to damage or weaken the foe, along with acrobatic and arial attacks.

Class: Red Mage (Offensive Magic and physical attacking, with weak defenses)

Level Progression:

Start - Spark - Will creates and tosses a ball of light to damage the foe

Start - Arial Kick - Will flies over doing a front flip right before kicking the foe

7 - Thunder - Will summons a bolt of lightning to strike the foe

11 - Fire - Will create a fire ball that attacks the foe

16 - Freeze - Will freezes the foe in Ice

21 - Drill Dive - Will flies above the foe before diving down with a powerful kick, rotating like a drill

25 - Poison - Will summons flowers that scatter toxic spores to poison the foe

33 -13 trials of heaven -Will flies over and delivers 13 kicks

40 - Confusion - Will engulfs the foe in a bright light that confuses them

47 - Breezy Requiem - Will summons a gale to blow nearby objects at the foe to smack them.

55 - Cripple - Cuts the foe's strength by half

60 - Bolts of Sorrow - Will summons a piller of lightning to drop down and electrocute everything around him.

77 - Nature's Wrath - Will summons tree roots to constrict the foes'

88 - Column of Light - Will summons a piller of light to crush the foe

100 - Cripple - Will cut's the foe's Defense, Strength, and Speed by half.

Wait for me! I'll finish at some point in the near future.

Name: Evra Reinhart
Age: 19
Gender: Male
Race: Human

Appearance:
Personality: Detail please--a few sentences
Background: Try to include something about your character's culture/faction (see below)--they don't exist in a vacuum, after all
Hometown: Either your custom setting from below, or one already made

Location: Describe a new setting to add to the world, or one you've made for a prior character. Try to touch a little on its climate, its location in relation to other places, and its inhabitants
Culture/Faction: Elaborate on the inhabitants of your setting. Can be very simple, but detail is always a plus, especially if it's large, like a kingdom or empire

Dragonblooded: State whether or not your character is Dragonblooded, and what powers they consequently have
Class: Scientist. Uses science to reproduce the effects of magic spells.
Level Progression:
Starting - Acid Flask: Let's Evra throw flasks of acid at enemies.

Name: Raiya'il Baal Thrashamain
Age: 37
Gender: Mala
Race: Human/Elf

Appearance: The best way to describe Raiya is regal. He stands tall, and relatively well built, with a toned body, and a long thin face. He has proud blue eyes and sharp ears. He has light skin, befitting one of his class, and locks of brown hair. He often dressed in a blue cloak, dotted with the symbol of his power, the Dragon, in gold across its surface, with fur lining on the top. His crown is golden, bejewelled with the three jewels of the kingdom, the Aemthrist, the Gildwaden and the Shiatin. On his feet he usually wears riding boots with golden spurs.

Personality: Raiya is proud, as can be seen in the mode of his rule. He is regal and acts like a king might. He shows mercy on those who would also show mercy, but is not afraid to crucify some rebels at any odd stage. He has been described as a kind and benevolent ruler, although only to those who sit in front of him. He is not necessarily kind, but neither is he cruel and distainful. He is often in grief at the loss of his great Empire, but proud of his Dragonblooded and Elven lineage.

Background: The House of Thrashamain were rulers of the Draiagid Empire for years after the death of Xeneid the Conquerer, one of the original Dragonblooded, and Elf, who had marched his armies over most of the continent. Eventually their blood became less pure, muddied with the filt of men. Kaiya came to the throne aged twenty, and grew up with wealth and spleandour around him. He did some good, making roads, imposing just Magistrates over the Empire. His armies conquered East and West, into neighbouring kingdoms. It all changed when the Alesians came from over the sea. They landed, sending legions across his land. His armies were beaten in battle after battle, unable to defeat the Alesians' superior fighting forces. He withdrew his Empire to along Helfel's Dyke, an old hill running continuously that divided his Kingdom in half. From then on he worked on fortifying it and making a professional army.

Hometown: Draiagid, the Golden City, Heart of the Draiagid Empire for centuries, now lost to Alesia.
Location: The new Trashian Kingdom, risen from the ashes of the Draiagid Empire. The area is held in on one side by Helfel's Wall, the fortifyed Helfel's Dyke, and on the other by a series of forts in strategic locations. The Kingdom was originally a poorer area of the Draiagid Empire, where resources like Gold and Iron were mined, and forests were cut down for wood. The Capital City is Aryal, an old miner's colony that, once the Royal Retinue arrived, expanded in size greatly, although not much in inhabitants. The Kingdom is rainy, although very fertile and rich in minerals.

Culture/Faction: The Trashian Kingdom has thrown off any semblance of an Empire, becoming a purely efficient Kingdom. Lavishness like races and theatres are rare, and almost every city is fortified. There is a period of compulsary service for every boy of the age of eighteen in the Legions of the Kingdom. The army is structured so:

The army is split into twenty Legions, each consisting of 3000 infantry, 800 horse, 2000 archers and 20 artillery pieces manned by 5 men each. Each Regiment is lead by a Dux. There are different ranks of Dux, each of which imply their seniority. The most senior Dux is an Imperator, basically the head of all Twenty Regiments. There are then Four Generals, Six Strategoi and Nine plane Duces.

The legions are split into Six Bands of infantry, 8 Wings of archers, Two Companies of House and 4 Houses of artillery. Each Band is lead by a First Sword, each Wing by a Captain of Bow, each Company by a Duocorian and each House my a Master of House.

Each Band is split into 5 Hands, each of which is led by a Captain. The First Hand is lead by the First Sword of that Band. Under the Captains are Lieutenants, under-Lieutenants and the Banner Bearers.

Each Wing is a unified unit, but under the Captain of Bow are the Five Callers, who in effect lead 50 men each, and under them are Lieutenants.

Each Company is split into 5 Squadrons, each led by a Vigintan.

Each House is split into Five Pieces, each led by a Master of Artillery. Each piece is, literally and Artillery Piece.

50% of the army is made up of the Militia. They usually play a lesser role to the regulars, standing in the second line of battle in the Infantry, merely carrying boulders in the artillery, or acting as messengers in the Cavalry.

There are many civilian ranks, such as the Five Governors and the Quaestors.

In the centre of the Kingdom lies the Grey Tower, where Magicians are trained. Like ordinary people, they have to spend time in the army, and are very secretive.

Dragonblooded: Raiya is a weak Dragonblooded. This results to little in the end besides enhanced physical ability and keen eyesight.
Class: Raiya is a Magician, and a strong one at that. He raised the whole of Helfel's Dyke by himself and held the armies of Alesia in check with only a few handfuls of men and magicians.

Level Progression:

Start-Levitate: Kaiya moves and controls the opponent with magic

Level 5-Fire Ball

Level 9-Thunderbolt

Level 13- Rock Slide

Level 19-River Flow

Level 21- Wind Blast

Level 27-Inferno

Level 36-Deep Cold

Level 41-Root Attack

Level 46-Thunder Storm

Level 53-Avalanche

Level 62-Tidal Wave

Level 71-Hurricane

Level 80-Volcano

Level 90-Power of the Elements

Level 100-Beam of Gods