[center][img]http://cms.mecheng.strath.ac.uk/t4/images/slideshow/Space_ASCLslide.jpg?1423008000024[/img] [b]Current year: 2253[/b] [/center] [center][i]“The Universe, so far as we can observe it, is a wonderful and immense engine; its extent, its order, its beauty, its cruelty, makes it alike impressive.”[/i][/center] You're a criminal, a convicted one at that, you did something terrible enough that [i]you[/i] were volunteered. Or, you're not a criminal, and you're crazy enough to actually volunteer. See, space opened to us many years ago, we actually got our shit together and left our little homeworld, first came Mars, next came some moons, then we went outside of our own star system, FTL is a thing of immense wonder. Amazingly enough, we encountered intelligent life, aliens, E.T.s, but they weren't little green men, they were friendly, if they weren't then we would've been turned to space dust, no doubt about it. From that first meeting we encountered others, humanity didn't try to blow up any of them either, turns out when we put our whole race in the social aspects of life, we actually succeed. Of course there was the military aspect, no wars though, more like sharing of military secrets, trades between our race and others. Along with a little spying, but we didn't tell them about that. The stuff of science fiction became reality, massive space ships which could carry thousands, energy weapons, even power armor and jetpacks. But let's get back to [i]you[/i], if you're a convicted criminal and you happen to possess a certain set of skills, then you've been selected to join the task force. There's some official name for it, but it's boring and over-complicated, let's just refer to you as a prospective member of Oblivion Squad. The result of the collective brainpower of different species brainstorming an expendable, but skilled force that could fight on the front lines, sneak through the stars or even drop onto a planet. Wanna guess who was the first species to come up with such a thing? Yeah, humanity. See, they offered you freedom if you survive the suicidal task force, but the issue is that you aren't supposed to survive. In fact, I can't recall off the top of my head someone in your position actually surviving the force then getting their freedom. But that won't stop you, I mean, what are you going to do? Turn down the offer and rot in a cell for the rest of your pathetic life? Non criminals may join as well, military personal from either species who passed screenings, testings and several papers to sign, essentially wavering your life away. I'm sure when you did willingly join, they promised a ton of money to be sent you or your family's way. But is it worth the death? Do you have what it takes to survive Oblivion Squad? [center]-----[/center] [u]Technology:[/u] I felt it was necessary to give some detail on the technology in this RP. Here's some basic information: [list] [*] [b]Hyperdrive technology[/b] is the method which humans and other species use to travel through the stars. A carefully plotted course must be taken in order to avoid the ship coming out of the jump into a collision course with another ship, a black hole or even in the middle of battle. Many hyperspace routes have already been established. When a jump is initiated, the ship enters hyperspace, then will emerge at its destination after a period of time depending on the distance traveled and the level of the hyperdrive. [*] [b]Weaponry[/b] - Weapons advanced with everything else as technology progressed. There are different types of weapons which are commonplace in the galaxy. Explosives, such as grenades, rocket launchers and landmines are popular. You will still find people carrying melee weapons such as pocket knives and heated energy swords. The types of projectile weapons are as follow, they descend in commonality in the galaxy: [hider=Cartridge] The humans made these popular, bullets haven't changed that much over the ages, just the more powerful ones that can pierce armor and damage shields are preferred. The other alien species began using these type of firearms as they are cheaper, despite being considered more "crude" by some. [/hider] [hider=Energy] Bolts of superheated pure energy, simply referred to as energy weaponry. They are efficient at going through materials such as walls and armor. Ammunition is provided through energy cells, which have to be recharged or energy packs which must be swapped in and out. [/hider] [hider=Laser] These are the weapons you will see on all ships and it is for a good reason, they are very powerful. While personal laser weapons are uncommon, they can be found if you look in the right places. Firing beams of laser, the poor target gets fried. [/hider] [hider=Plasma] Painful is one word for this type, the rarest of them all, but very effective at causing your enemy painful wounds and death, plasma weapons literally burn through armor, shields, walls, skin and bones. They aren't very commonplace, nor that accurate, but if you hit the target it will hurt them. [/hider] [*] [b]Standard armor[/b] - Personal armor is common among those traveling through the stars, it is standard issue for military personal and a must for anybody who has a job that requires them to get shot at. Personal armors come in either the light or standard classes, the design and patterns depending on the wearer, but they are all universally made of high strength metals such as titanium. [*] [b]Power armor[/b] - a whole different type. It is much less common than the weaker kinds, but still can be seen worn by some soldiers, mercenaries and bounty hunters. It was a revelation for warfare when it was perfected, changing the way soldiers fought. Not any soldier can wear power armor, it has to be custom fit to its wearer and is so heavy that it require micro motors powered by an engine in order to allow the wearer to move, but the protection it offers is top of the line. A different kind is worn by miners on some planets. [*][b]Energy shields[/b] - In other words, a deflector shield. Energy shields are commonplace among soldiers and are included with most armors. These types of shields help protect the wearer from explosions, bullets, various energy blasts and some environmental hazards such as falls. A different wearable kind is used by miners working in hazardous conditions. Energy shields do not last forever, if they take enough punishment they will temporarily fail, exposing the wearer to more damage. Depending on the shield, it either needs to recharge over time or through an exterior power source. [*] [b]Cybernetics (augmentations)[/b] - Mechanical augmentation is commonplace in today's society, it has opened up a new era for society, possibilities never imagined before have been achieved. Amputees have limbs, paraplegics can walk. Humanity is not the only species to use this technology, but there is still a fear among some humans that some will go overboard with augmentations and try to become full machines. There have been no reported cases of this, but the wealthier people have been known to replace working body parts with superior cybernetic parts. [/list] [u]The ship:[/u] [img]http://tf3dm.com/imgd/l38038-federation-interceptor-battle-cruiser-18735.jpg[/img] [img]http://tf3dm.com/imgd/l96401-federation-interceptor-battle-cruiser-18735.jpg[/img] The S.S. Vigilance is an advanced starship, one of the first of her kind. She is a hybrid of a frigate class warship and a gunship, possessesing the capability to land on planets and travel through the stars. The ship is fully capable in battle, but it truly excels in the areas of speed and stealth, where she is unmatched. The pilot is aided by a fully functional A.I., the one on the Vigilance is known as Eve. As for weaponry, the ship's armament consists of three forward facing laser cannons, two swivel laser cannons, one laser turret and one lock on missile launcher. In combat, the pilot focuses on flying the ship, the A.I. controls the weaponry and one other crewman mans the turret. The ship's maximum crew is 30 people, though it can be run with a minimum of 2. The ship has three levels, on the first level is the [url=http://img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20071006173443/starwars/images/c/c5/Ehawkcp.jpg]bridge[/url], escape pods, starmap room, science and [url=http://jordanpearce.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/bowen_ellames_enviro_08.jpg]medical lab[/url]s, armory, firing range, captain's room and conference room. The second level consists of the crew's quarters, restrooms, gym and mess hall. The third and final level consists of the hanger, main engineering and port cargo. The hangar contains any crew personal ships as well as a [url=http://stockcg.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Space-shuttle-unit1.jpg]shuttle[/url]. [center]-----[/center] [u]Rules:[/u] 1. No godmodding, metagaming, etc. 2. Proper grammar is needed. At least two paragraphs per IC post. No one liners. 3. Original characters and races. Also only one character per person. 4. Character can die, be warned. 5. No fighting or being an asshole on the OOC. 6. Profanity and romance is cool in this RP. Just keep the romance in the IC PG - 13. Fade it to black. 7. Please be active, if you are for whatever reason going to be unable to post then please tell me ahead of time. I understand that real life takes priority. However, if you disappear for two weeks without a word from you, then you'll be removed from the RP. 8. As the GM of this RP, my word is law. [center][color=yellow]Accepting three new characters and species![/color][/center] [hider=Character Sheet] Character name: Criminal?: (Yes or no) Convicted for: (If a criminal) Species: Gender: Sexual orientation: Age: (If not a human character, then list the age in your species as well as relative to human years.) Appearance: (Pics or description, or both. No anime pics.) Height: Weight: Apparel: (What do you wear on missions and out of missions?) Weapons: Equipment: (Non weaponry you carry, includes any augmentations) Personal starfighter: (Optional) Skills: Weaknesses: Powers: (Stuff like telekinesis, healing, flying, etc. Don't go nuts.) Personality: Biography: [/hider] [hider=Species Sheet] Species name: Appearance: (Pics or description work.) Powers: (Telepathic? Levitation? Water breathing? etc.) Strengths: (Things such as naturally strong, naturally skilled with machines, etc.) Weaknesses: Age scale: (Do they on average only live 50 years? 500 years? 1000 years? No immortality though.) Culture: (How do they act around other species? Any religion?) Homeworld: Rarity: (Are there a few of them left? Millions? Billions? One or two colonies? Over thirty?) Government type - (Monarchy, democracy, dictatorship, etc.) Strength - (A military superpower? Avoid conflicts involving other races altogether? Don't go overboard, no race should be overly powerful.) Backstory - (When did they take to the stars? Come into conflict with anyone else? Get into wars?) [/hider] [center]-----[/center] [u]Races: [/u] [hider=Humans] Not much has changed about humans in the decades since they first walked on the Moon. They are a well rounded species that is common around the galaxy. Many of them that do not live on the colonies choose to take up such occupations as traveling merchants, smugglers, mercenaries, assassins and bounty hunters. While they have no real natural advantages over the other species, they instead are a very well rounded race capable of becoming skilled in many areas. The human homeworld is Earth. There is no really accurate number of the amount of humans in the galaxy, but estimates are put at over 20 billion people. Government type - Democracy Strength - The human government, the E.S.A. (Earth Systems Alliance) is a well rounded and large government which represents all of humanity. They have a powerful military which separates them most from the others. They are not particularity weak in any other areas, just average. They have done remarkably well in founding colonies all over the place, currently laying claim to 18 colony worlds in and outside their home system (the Sol system). Backstory - The E.S.A. was founded shortly after they colonized their second planet outside of their home system. Since then, they have been hugely successful in their intergalactic affairs, making allies with other species and creating many trade routes.[/hider] [url=http://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/76639-the-galactic-ocean/ooc?page=2#post-2405489]Mesocricetians[/url] [url=http://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/76639-the-galactic-ocean/ooc?page=2#post-2405233]Oko[/url]