Hello, hello, and welcome to you all! This is a roleplay based upon Final Fantasy VI, with a bit of an altered timeline. More will be explained after the intro, but for now read on! And for anyone that doesn't know much about Final Fantasy VI, you may want to skip ahead to the information section before reading the intro.
[img]http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2011/216/6/e/final_fantasy_vi_logo_by_eldi13-d41ucrd.png[/img]
The Gestahlian Empire
The Empire was formed 735 years ago where it had declared its independence from the world as a military state and intended to create a global police force. Gestahl was born as heir to a military family. The empire experienced a military coup 13 years later. Little is known about the coup other than Gestahl's father being heavily involved. The Imperial Palace was constructed 21 years afterward as the Emperor was facing increasing pressure to expand its armaments. Gestahl becomes Emperor 18 years later, and mutual peace was later agreed upon, although Narshe refused to sell coal to the invading Gestahlian Empire with armed resistance. Two years later, the Gestahlian Empire started its first military campaign, conquering the entire south continent. During this time Emperor Gestahl captured the espers that fuel Magitek with the Magitek Research Facility being developed shortly thereafter. The technology was developed by Cid Del Norte Marquez, the Empire's chief engineer, after Gestahl led a band of soldiers into the Esper World and brought back numerous espers to Vector, where Cid developed a technique for extracting the magic out of them. He tested this technology on Kefka Palazzo, but the process was still in development and was rudimentary — it shattered Kefka's mind and left him a psychopath. Six years afterwards the military's command structure was restructured and the initial results of the research facility were published by the Empire.

The Magitek process was refined and the Empire began to mass-produce Magitek weapons. Magic was granted to the Empire's elite soldiers, who became known as Magitek Knights, including General Celes Chere. Four years after the initial results, the Empire commenced its second military campaign, conquering the Western continent due largely to the deployment of the experimental Magitek Armors, the main Magitek weapon in use. Magitek Armor is a large armored machine piloted by an Imperial soldier who can channel beams of magical energy. Various other Magitek machines were created, including the Imperial Air Force, and the Empire's strongest weapon, the Guardian. Seven years on the Gestahlian Empire got into skirmishes with Doma, with the former pursuing a third military campaign a year later. With Magitek's unequaled power, the Gestahlian Empire began to conquer the entire world. The other nations on the southern continent where Vector is located — Tzen, Albrook and Maranda — were conquered one by one, and the Empire begins pushing into the north.

The Half Esper
Years before, a human woman unknowingly stumbled upon the world of the espers. She was badly wounded, and near death when she was found by the confused espers. An esper, Maduin, nursed the woman back to health and eventually they fell in love. This union led to the production of a half esper child by the name of Terra.

Two years after the birth of the half esper, an army led by the emperor Gestahl found it way to the world of the espers. Pillaging the land of the espers and capturing all that stood in their way, the overwhelming numbers of the imperial army crushed the espers and many were taken to become slaves. With his power, the Elder of the Esper World cast a seal to prevent any humans from ever entering the land again. Madeline escaped from the world with her child, though close to death. Gestahl discovered the dying woman and took the child, fascinated by the prospect of a half esper. The half esper was raised as a living weapon by the emperor, her magical abilities of the highest power.

The Imperial general Kefka Palazzo took an interest in her and placed a slave crown on her, forcing her to obey his orders directly. Among them was the order to annihilate fifty of the Empire's finest soldiers to gauge the extent of her powers and the slave crown's effectiveness.

Approximately twenty years after their initial invasion of the Esper World, the Empire dispatches Terra Branford with two soldiers to raid Narshe and capture the frozen esper the town had dug up in a new mine shaft. The raid fails, and the Slave Crown controlling Terra is damaged, and she regains her free will and sides with a rebel faction, the Returners. This marks the turning of the tide against the Empire.

The Warring Triad
The Returners decide that it is time to launch an all-out attack on the Empire, and the leader asks Terra to attempt contacting the espers' land in order to gain their support. Terra succeeds in making contact, and when the espers learn that the others captured by the Empire previously have now perished, they become infuriated and enter the human world, where they destroy much of Vector. When the Returners arrive in the capital, they find Emperor Gestahl claiming to no longer have the will to fight, inviting the Returners to a banquet to negotiate peace. Gestahl asks Terra to deliver a truce to the espers on his behalf, to which she agrees.

Soon, they find the espers and Terra convinces them to accept a truce with Gestahl. However, during the negotiations, Kefka attacks the espers, killing each of those still alive and capturing the magicite that remains from their essence. The Returners reunite, now aware that the peace was a ploy for Gestahl to obtain magicite and the stone statue remains of the Warring Triad within the espers' now-unsealed land. Kefka and Gestahl travel through the open gate to the esper world, find the Warring Triad, and prompt the island on which the esper world is located to detach and fly in the sky as an ominous Floating Continent. The Returners attempt to stop them from causing further damage, but despite their efforts, they are unable to prevent Kefka and Gestahl from gaining the power of the statues. Now empowered, Kefka promptly kills Gestahl and moves the statues out of their proper alignment, upsetting the balance of magical power and causing the destruction of most of the surface world.

The World of Ruin
Kefka now rules over the ruined world with an iron fist, using the power of the Triad to crush any resistance. Terra, the half esper, and a group of returners reunite and start one last, final assault upon Kefka, one last fateful battle. Victory seems sure for the Returners, but at the last moment Kefka ends his life and unleashes his wrath upon the group, ending their lives. The power of the espers stored within him is spread across the ruined world, unknowingly spreading magic throughout the land. Though rare, certain few in the world are empowered with newfound magical ability.

After the deaths of Kefka and the Returners, a disciple of Kefka by the name of Aga Ferrer seizes control of the power of the Warring Triad, taking Kefka's place as the power of the land. He rules with the same iron-fist that Kefka did though more intelligent and logical in his choices. Aga establishes the Ferrer Empire, proclaiming himself empire. And now, a new rebel group has established in the land, calling themselves the Returners. The cycle has begun again, but who will come out victorious?
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The Warring Triad reaches out to certain wanderers across the world, unconsciously influencing them towards one place where they can communicate their wishes - The Train of Phantoms. Will these unlikely heroes be able to free the land from the iron fist of the Ferrer Empire, or will they fall like the rest? Only time will tell.
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Still interested? Well, the roleplay will start off with a group of unlikely heroes meeting upon the Phantom Train. They have unconsciously arrived at the location from the influence of the Warring Triad, who have used their last ounces of freewill to call out to these different people. Though it wasn't the Warring Triad that chose them, it was fate. The Phantom Train is a place of mystery, where the spiritual and physical worlds meet. A place that will allow the Triad to openly communicate with the heroes. The roleplay will develop from there as the heroes set off to fight against the tyrannous empire.
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Rules:
-Don't metagame, godmode, cheat, or control anyone elses character. Y'know, the stuff that any roleplayer should know.
-For posts, any intros or big action posts should be at least 2 or 3 paragraphs minimum. Some casual points where just conversation is going on and you can pass off with 1 paragraph, but more is still recommended.
-Don't be an asshat, be nice to everyone and don't argue. Debates are alright, though if I intervene my decision will be final.
-Romance is alright, and encouraged too, but keep anything PG-13.
-Have fun, yo.
-Wait a couple posts or so before writing a response, don't wanna leave anyone behind.
-Not much else, just y'know, follow your gut I guess.

Map of the land
[img]http://www.fantasyanime.com/finalfantasy/ff6/ff6map_ruin.jpg[/img]
The world was pulled apart after the power of the Warring Triad was released. The phantom train can appear anywhere in the world due to its etheral connections, and its always associated with an eerie forest.

[hider=Character Sheet]
Name:
Gender:
Age:
Appearance: (Either put a picture or provide a written description, your choice. Remember, pictures do not provide very much detail on the physical aspects of the character, so if you include a picture provide some details such as height, weight, etc.)
Personality: (What is your character like, inside and out?)
Bio: (Where does your character come from, what has led them to where they currently are?)
Special abilities/skills: (Any abilities or skills that your character has possesion of. e.g. swordplay, magic skill, piloting of magitek armor, etc.)
Weaknesses: (What makes your character crack? C'mon, I know they're there.)
Other: (Anything else?)[/hider]
Information~ (Just some stuff for you to read up on, if you want full history you're going to have to do that research yourself.)

[hider=Current State of the World]
It is 50 years after the battle between the Returners and Kefka. The world is still recovering from the power of the Warring Triad, and even though Aga is still in control of those powers, the world is a bit more in shape. The empire has risen and a certain order has enveloped the land, though one lead by tyranny. Slavery isn't uncommon in the world, and is actually encouraged by the empire.[/hider]
[hider=The Returners]
Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, The Returners have returned (Ha, see what I did there?) once again to fight tyranny. They exist primarily in rumor, but in secret they are preparing themselves for war.
[/hider]
[hider=The Ferrer Empire]
The Ferrer Empire was created by none other than Aga Ferrer, the current posessor of the Triad's power. The empire is highly armed and manned, and is very powerful. The empire posesses magicite from the old world that is drained and used alongside born magicians to create magitek armor and the such.
[/hider]
[hider=Esper]
Espers were created as a result of humans coming into contact with magic and the Warring Triad during their war for dominance. The gods realized what they were doing was wrong, and sealed themselves away in the forms of statues. They gave the espers back their free will, and asked them to protect them. A second war began between espers and humans seeking to use their powers, beginning the War of the Magi. At the height of the war the espers created a new realm and escaped there with the Warring Triad's statues.

A handful of espers remained in the world, such as Valigarmanda, who was frozen in ice, and Odin, who was petrified in the Ancient Castle buried deep within the mountains. Ramuh lived in the human world for an unspecified time, using his humanoid appearance to blend into normal society, and he implies other espers do the same. The espers' magicite remains also remained, such as Ragnarok and Phoenix. As the remaining espers concealed their existence, the knowledge of magic faded from conscious mind and became the stuff of legends and myths.

Currently, espers exist only in magicite and are long gone from the world of man. Though, some may have hid themselves away in the world and survived this entire time, you can never know.
[/hider]
[hider=Magitek armor]
[img]http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140714222716/finalfantasy/images/4/42/MagitekArmor-enemy-ffvi-ios.png[/img]
Magitek armor is a mechanical weapon employed by the Empire, able to fire beams of magical energy through the Empire's Magitek technology.

Magitek Armor, along with the rest of the Empire's Magitek, was developed by Cid Del Norte Marquez. All Magitek Armor units are produced in the Magitek Research Facility at Vector. Magitek Armored troops appear in all territories and cities occupied by the Empire, though they are not as numerous as the Empire's foot army.

Magitek Armor appears as a yellow and brown exo-suit, roughly humanoid in design with the seat for the rider being mounted on the armor's torso. Magitek attacks are seen to be fired from the chestplate of the armor when used by party members. In CG sequences and Yoshitaka Amano's designs Magitek Armor is draconian in appearance, and the rider sits on the approximate location of the "neck"
[/hider]
[hider=Magicite]
[img]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a107/vincentBurden/Magicite.jpg[/img]
Magicite is the postmortem remains of an esper. For the esper's magical power to be fully drained, it must be transformed into magicite. The esper's soul remains anchored to the magicite, and can communicate and be temporarily summoned back into their living incarnation.

Magicite can be used by normal human beings as a source of power, enabling them to learn magic. It can also be used to create magitek armor.
[/hider]
[hider=Magic in the World Today]
Magic users are rare, though not unheard of by any means. At birth the power of the espers that is spread across the world inhabits the body of the child, latching on and providing power. Magic users are hunted down and captured by the empire, forced to either work for them or be siphoned of their magical powers.
[/hider]
[hider=Magitek Knight]
A Magitek knight is a soldier of the Gestahlian Empire that has been infused with Magitek and given the ability to cast magic, much like Terra Branford is able to do naturally due to her half-esper heritage. The exact process for creating Magitek knights is unknown, but it apparently involves some sort of augmentation to the brain, and according to Celes Chere, the subject is asleep during the procedure. Kefka Palazzo was the first experimental Magitek knight, but the process wasn't perfected yet and it drove him insane. Later experiments refined the process to be more reliable. Kefka, however, was implied to be significantly stronger than Celes in terms of magical ability.
[/hider]