NationStates Jolt Archive

Setting

The wastelands, a broken and scarred territory of rocks and desert, where towns and tribes cling just barely to life. The physical remains of central authority dot the landscape, the haunt of spirits and memories from the past.

The Plot

There are items hidden in this dusty lands, things of great power. It's your job to either find them, or prevent others from finding them. What happens after you find them? Well, it's up to you. Why are you finding them? That's up to you, too.

Example

Someone is sent by their tribe to prove themselves in order to become the new Shaman. He finds all the items, and at the end of his adventure they're locked up in the tribe's hidden treasure vaults, while he's the shaman.

Example 2

A prince goes and finds the treasure so he can marry a princess. At the end, he marries the princess and the items are used to create a rainbow.

Example 3

An evil mage gets the items and turns into God.

Possibilities and aims are limited only by your imagination.

The Catch

In order to seek these treasures, you need to be bound to the hunt. If you don't undergo the binding, the treasure cannot be handled. When bound, you must always pursue the items, as an unbreakable geas has been placed on you. You must gather the items, until such time as you or someone else has assembled them.

All well and good. But there's a catch. You can't kill the other 'competitors', those others who have taken the binding. Nor can you kill those dedicated to preventing the union of the items. You may take any actions you like. You can beg, borrow, lie, steal, seduce, knock out, or hire thugs to rough up your opponents. But you can't kill.

I'm in. More to come tomorrow when Jolt starts being more cooperative...hopefully.

Edit: Alright. The natives of Patrynia are innate God-level magic-users. Their magic is rune-based, highly flexible and incredibly powerful. Their bodies and weapons are covered in appropriate runes (ie. runes of death and flight on a spear). They tend to like concealment, and they are fiercely xenophobic, and tend to see themselves as superior to everyone else.

Does the kill prohibition cover only direct killing, indirect personal killing(Hiring someone), indirect impersonal killing(ie: deliberately causing a rockslide where the likelyhood of the person dying is very high but not absolute) or any method where the actions of the first party result in the death of the second party? And no killing in self-defence while the defenders of the items can kill?

Also is there anything wrong with crippling, maiming or otherwise incapacitating an opponent?

And also Psionic/Magick abilities are they limited to prevent things like driving characters insane or in fact direct control and even some sort of permanent mental incompacitance without actually causing physical death

I imagine it'd be best to take both of those on a case by case basis, though deliberately causing a rockslide would be...iffy.

And also Psionic/Magick abilities are they limited to prevent things like driving characters insane or in fact direct control and even some sort of permanent mental incompacitance without actually causing physical death

Personally I'd expect not... however assuming everyone is using hero level characters in this I would expect the effect of such spells/control would be limited and/or resisted by their own protection to some extent, depending on each individual character and their magical abilities.

Anyways, you know I'm in Ro, albeit not with this nation as it completely lacks magical ability. I'll sort myself out sometime later or tomorrow depending on how my head feels, my cold isn't fun and I'd like to be able to think straight for longer periods of time.

I'd love to give thisa try. I'll come up with a character in the near future.

I'm definetly in.

I've come to the conclusion that any problems will be dealt with ICly. Possibly via targeted asteroid strikes, should they prove absolutely neccessary.

Rules

Common sense would be a bonus. The truly powerful, unless insane, are actually probably amongst the least likely to take risks of this nature themselves without calculation of the benefits.

Make it interesting. "Bill Goes over there" is not interesting without us knowing why "Bill goes over there".

An awesome godlike power might be useful for the RP, but wouldn't do much for character interaction.

You may have a maximum of two or three characters at any one time. Only one character will have the binding put in place.

Pack-animals count towards that limit.

No character sheets. All I want from you now are faction details, character names, and the reason for hunting. Introduction can take place in the thread.

Tag for tag's sake.

Would boredom be too 'off-beat' a (primary) reason for someone to go looking for these items. Someone who's not entirely right in the head?

Also any racial limiters?

I'll get this whole sign up process started with my faction, for what it's worth this is the puppet nation I (Iuthia) intended on making for this organisation sooner or later, just so there are no surprises as to who I am.


The Gentle Dawn

A small but elite secret magical organistion that works to keep mankind safe and protects Midchildia from dangerous magical threats both internal and external. Relatively young compared to other secret magical orders, the Gentle Dawn is only several generations old and was originally founded by a young teenage mage whom had vowed to protect her homeland, Midchildia, from the magical dangers which occasionally occur in the peaceful small serene republic.

The organisation itself is comprised of mostly young mages, usually in their teens due to a strange magical potency in Midchildia mages that only seems to occur at puberty before settling down to more normal levels a little way into adulthood. Despite this, however, the ability to properly channel the human spirit into magical effects is exceptionally rare among the populace and only a few, if any, are found and recruited by the Gentle Dawn each year, varing in ability. It is often found that the more powerful mages in the Gentle Dawn are girls with boys taking more of a support role with wider range of abilities in the place of raw power.

Recently the Gentle Dawn has sensed the presence of powerful magical artifacts in The Wastelands but are unable to pinpoint their location or even get a better baring on where they may be. After some concideration and debating they have come to their normal conclusion that such magical artifacts being of an unknown nature could pose a serious threat to Midchildia and posibility the world, at the very least they could harm innocents who don't know any better. So the decision is made to send two of it's more powerful mages (yet to be named) to properly investigate the matter and collect these artifacts for proper safe storage and careful examination.

[Character Introduction to be done later, along with build up to leaving for the Wastelands.]

A small tribe deep inside the wasteland struggle to survive against the horrors and trials thereof, it is amazing that they still exist after so long living in the Wasteland but many centuries of living there have layed their toll on the people there.

Known to themselves and perhaps the one or two people that have ever come across their path as the Rohedron are very insular and very mis-trusting of everyone else, they had to be to survive. However once you have proved yourself to be trust worthy you are treated like a brother. The entire tribe is very close (both genetically as they are extremely in-bred and socially) and every member of the Tribe thinks first and foremost of the Tribe as a whole and then after that themselves.

The strength of the Tribe as a whole is certainly their, well, strength. Living in the conditions they do certainly require frequent and generally heavy exercise with barely enough food to sustain the population. However there is a Mystical-side to the Rohedron.

The Mystical and Religious sides of the Rohedron go hand in hand with each other, the Rohedron have only ever possesed one book that never seems to tear or age. They call it "The Word" and is their religious text. Only the Head Shaman has the ability to read this and the teaching of the Language is passed down to the apprentice Shaman.

"The Word" contains among other things a prophesy describing a child that will one day bring the tribe up from it's constant toil and trouble into an entirely new and glorious existance. That child has been born and is studying as an Aprentice Shaman under the Head Shaman. His name Ta'chet (Ta - gutteral ch - et, as the french say et). The thing is Ta'chet was also a twin however only a fraternal twin, his twin syster Ta'shi is not special but as all Rohedron she works hard is strong and is very determined.

Ta'chet while still young has mastered many aspects of the position of Shaman, not at least, is his ability to call forth Divine Miracles from the Divine Entity as described in the word. A week ago the Head Shaman dreamed a dream, there where various uncounted pieces of the Divine Artifact spread throughout the wasteland. The Artifact as mentioned in "The Word" is the catalsyt and the prophesy involving Ta'chet requires it to be collected and activated.

Ta'chet was willingly bound to quest for the items as it was for the tribe and his sister Ta'shi would not be without her brother the two of them where quite close even for Rohedron and they where the first twins born for how long but two young and eager young adults required the wisdom of the Head Shaman to proceed but he was needed more at home in the Tribe more than with the young twins. And so a helper was sent with them the tribes only beast of burden, performing a divinly powered miracle the Head Shaman is able to see and percieve what the beast of burden see's and perceives and able to communicate his wisdom and thoughts via the beast to the twins.

Ta'chet and Ta'shi headed out and while the Head Shaman could communicate with and see what they where upto the Head Shaman could not control the beast's behaviour.

Would boredom be too 'off-beat' a (primary) reason for someone to go looking for these items. Someone who's not entirely right in the head?

Also any racial limiters?

OOC: If you can make boredom work as a rationale, sure. And no, no racial limiters.

OOC: I'm in? Pretty please?

It was a strange sight to see in the wastelands, a lone elf maid trekking through the desert. She was tan-skinned and dark-eyed as her people tended to be, the former being a fortunate trait to have in this land where the harsh sun burned. It was her hair that gave her away.

It was dark brown rather than proper elvish black, with natural auburn highlights that blazed in the sunlight, it even had with a bit of a curl, especially around the ends, and it marked her for all the world to see as a half-breed. A half-breed orphan. No good to anyone. They'll never even notice I've left. Amara thought bitterly.

After the death of her father, she had been sent to the orphanage. It wasn't a bad place if you were a PROPER elf. But as a half-breed, Amara wasn't permitted to room with the other girls. She was given a pallet in the kitchen, and forced to work from sunup and sundown seeing to the needs of the other orphans. Ten long years she suffered, until her eighteenth birthday, when, even though she had nowhere to go, she walked out the front door and never looked back.

That was why she was here; why she had packed up what few belongings she possessd and set off on this dangerous journey. If she could find the treasure, she could make a new start in a new place. A place where she would belong, just as she was. Even if I don't find the treasure, I can work. I could be a waitress somewhere or a dancer. Anything. At least I won't be a servant anymore. And maybe....maybe I can finally find real home of my own.

A scion of a noble house was bored with the endless routine of training in the gentlemanly arts, fencing, some magics, the parties and overall pampered lifestyle. During a particularly tedious party, he found himself in the library of the manor, there to see a most interesting book. Within the tome there were references to a collection of artifacts that were hidden away waiting for someone to collect them.

After the party, he returned to his faimly home to continue looking into legend. A few weeks later he decided to pack up and go find the objects as it seemed to be much more interesting than listening to insipid people gossip, old crones lecture and all the other things that composed his daily life.

Do y'all really want to do the IC stuff here instead of on a separate thread?

This an OOC thread, I thought, given the title of it.

Do y'all really want to do the IC stuff here instead of on a separate thread?

This an OOC thread, I thought, given the title of it.

I'm pretty sure this isn't actually proper IC, but more of an elaborate Character Faction/Motivation format, since Roania doesn't want a character sheet. At least that's how I see it/wrote as.

I've come to the conclusion that any problems will be dealt with ICly. Possibly via targeted asteroid strikes, should they prove absolutely neccessary.

Rules

Common sense would be a bonus. The truly powerful, unless insane, are actually probably amongst the least likely to take risks of this nature themselves without calculation of the benefits.

Make it interesting. "Bill Goes over there" is not interesting without us knowing why "Bill goes over there".

An awesome godlike power might be useful for the RP, but wouldn't do much for character interaction.

You may have a maximum of two or three characters at any one time. Only one character will have the binding put in place.

Pack-animals count towards that limit.

No character sheets. All I want from you now are faction details, character names, and the reason for hunting. Introduction can take place in the thread.

Faction: Clan Dragyn (currently the ruling Clan of Patrynia)

Character Name: Sarto

Motivation: Orders from the Lord Protector. Failure will bring painful punishment, according to the Lord Protector. Not that this bothers him much. Sarto figures he can take the Lord Protector's position any time he wants. But keeping the lower races from finding the hidden artifacts and unleashing their power in the lower races' grubby, unworthy hands will offer some amusement and perhaps even a challenge for Sarto, unlike the Protectorship. Politics bores him.

Do y'all really want to do the IC stuff here instead of on a separate thread?

This an OOC thread, I thought, given the title of it.

Oops. I'll check with Roania and if he wants me to edit I will, since mine's really more of an introduction.

Theao is quite correct, even if some of these have been a little more elaborate than was my first intention. No harm done, and we'll get started tomorrow/the day after tomorrow.

First note. This is Rev's player, if you didn't already know that. So. This means that Ro owes me a few souls and yeoman's service...Rrawr.

Mmmkay, following the general format...My party.

Faction: The Ghostfire Legion, Third Detachment. Lead by Sivon Telvaris, based from the Strike Cruiser Blessed Katie.

Characters:

Leader - Sivon Telvaris, Warknight Artificer of the Ghostifre Legion.

Followers - Wooster the Dwarf Pit Fiend (Dwarf because at five foot, he's a little over half the size of the normally nine foot tall pit fiends.) and the Dread Lich H'Llahrith.

Motivation: The Ghostfire Legion is built on its Warsmiths and Artificers. They are always on the lookout for further gadgetry to experiment with. So the rumor of a whole mess of artifactry in one place is just a bit too much to resist.

Sivon is more than a little insane, but he's the only one who wouldn't be bothered by the Thou Shalt Not Kill geas. Mostly because he's also the only one in the Ghostfire Legion to possess a suit of Vanguard Relic armor. That it has all the extra gadgetry that goes with it being Warknight's suit is just, as they say, gravy.

Wooster is Sivon's...call him a familiar. General lackey and dog-robber. H'Llahrith is one of a certain brand of 'Lecherous Liches,' pioneered by the Lich who more or less stalks Sethric Velisar of the Chaos Harpies. Except she's infinitely more terrifying and follows Sivon more out of convenience than out of any misguided lust.

There.