[i]let's say that, about one out of every 10 thousand people is born 'different,' there's something off about them, maybe they don't get along with their peers, or have strange habits. Perhaps they like animals more than people, or even very specific animals, sometimes they like animals or creatures that don't exist, like elves or dragons, these people go through their whole lives keenly aware that they are different. Usually hiding their true nature, some of them may say they are the things they feel attachment to, though others would write it off as crazy.

Perhaps these people, these "Others" are right, maybe in the grand metaphysical system that holds the world together, they got their souls mismatched at birth, whether they were born with the soul of an animal like a wolf or a tiger, or they were born as something not even of this world, such as a chimera or faerie, nobody would ever know for sure though, it's not like anybody believes in metaphysics these days anyway.

on January first 2016, the world got a grim reminder that there are things science can never explain. Magic came to the Earth, or perhaps returned from some long lost slumber, nobody can really know for certain. The point is, everybody born as an Other gained the ability to shapeshift, and magic became possible for the masses, to a degree anyway. The most visible part of this was roughly 70 thousand humans waking up that day as what they had always wanted to be, most would rapidly learn they could shapeshift back, and proceed to keep it a secret. But a few would post it on some discreet corner of the internet, and at least one idiot would put it on facebook.

Governments of the world scrambled to action, seeking to claim this power for themselves, imagine a whole regiment of Dragons! or soldiers who could shapeshift into common animals and fool the enemy, if they had their way, war would never be the same. Science would dissect the shapeshifters, human rights would be revoked for them, a whole new civil rights movement would have to occur.

But it won't, because in this case, it would be the stronger party looking for civil rights, who wants to bully someone who may have untold powers beyond anybody's understanding? Shapeshifters don't need civil rights, in fact, they could oppress humanity if they want to. Not that they will, instead, with the majority seeking peace, over the next month, they would flee to the few uninhabited places in the world, forging their own society without technology, but with magic instead. Because, indeed, shapeshifters have the most natural talent for magic, even if a human practiced for a year, they would be unable to match what shapeshifters could do by instinct. The largest new society is located in South America, protected from infiltration or attack by a magical forcefield created by it's inhabitants, the date is February sixth, 2016, a week after the field was established, and a month and a few days since the world changed.[/i]

Since that day, the ones known as Others have become Shifters, those few still trying to live in human society deal with a mixture of fear and hatred, while those living outside of it have to face the troubles of forming a new society, a new country even, and face the possibility of going extinct in less than a year.

WIP

[hider=CS Format]
Name: First, Last, Alias if applicable
Age: Can seriously be anything
Sex:
Alternative Form: Again, can be anything, from something humanesque like an elf or Faerie, to something we have on earth, such as a dolphin or bear, or something completely foreign to earth, like a Chimera or Dragon.
Human Apperance: I'm not too picky on the chosen art style, whether photograph or drawing or whatever
Alternative Appearance:
Biography: Include country of origin, but for convenience, let's have everybody at least capable of speaking rudimentary english
Personality:
Views on the conflict: Humanity versus non-humans? are they all human? should they shut themselves off or seek approval, or perhaps even protection?
Magical Capability: All shifters are more capable of magic than ordinary humans, but it requires practice for anybody to utilize

If you wish to make a human character, just omit the unnecessary parts.[/hider]

[hider=Magic]
As magic is on it's way to becoming commonplace, everybody needs to know about it. Magic is like a muscle, the more you use it the easier it gets and the more often you can use it. Put simply, magic is just application of willpower to alter the world, using it is as simple as knowing it exists and wanting to use it. Should the user lack the capability to do something, the magic will backfire, usually but not always harmlessly, and drain all energy from the individual until it regenerates within 24 hours.

Shifters sometimes have magic intrinsic to their species, and that will always come instinctively for them. Beyond that, they are capable of learning more quickly, but a human can also get up to that level with dedication, and human mages could very possibly threaten the world within a short time.[/hider]

[hider=Objective]
While personal goals will vary from individual to individual, the currently agreed upon motivation is to become a UN recognized group and hopefully gain human rights in every country. Currently, many countries forbid shifters from having human rights and keep them locked up or experimented upon, though some countries are progressive enough to leave them alone so long as they follow the law, countries hostile and friendly will be kept track of in the OOC, currently, Russia is hostile and USA is divided, I'll let the players vote on other countries to feature and their views.

The greater goal will be sending diplomatic groups and perhaps occasionally defending the few Shifter communities from attack, the main community will be in Argentina, so the very first thing should likely be acquiring protection, temporary or otherwise, from their government, There is a military watch placed on the forcefield from the beginning[/hider]