I used a program called Gimp to do that. It's free online. My cousin introduced me to it a couple years ago.

*Glances between picture and your response a couple times.* ... We would have such dirty orphans. XD Fixed! I replaced the image above. If your nitpicking involves anything that actually bothers you, let me know.

As for dress code... Like you said, and since there are usually none of your usual tells for gender in lizardfolk/kobolds, how about those loincloths you seem to have a thing for? For those with more human gender characteristics... how about boys with some type of shorts or pants depending on what they're doing (a pair of each for them, and they are responsible for keeping them clean) and a lighter pair of shorts for bed? Also for the boys, maybe a light short-sleeved/sleeveless shirt for when they need that extra protection, go into town, or whatever other reason have you. For the girls, light, single-layer, ankle- or mid-calf-length dresses and light leggings for daily use, with a medieval-style chemise for pajamas?

@Aristocles

I have GIMP 2. Wow. What options did you select from? I can probably do the same kind of thing. :)

I don't "have a thing" for loincloths. That is how those species are commonly depicted in fiction. Especially lizardfolk. lol

How about this: for human and human-like males (humans, elves, dwarves, halflings), we have sleeveless shirts and shorts. For the girls, something which covers their torsos but leaves their legs free would be important, since they have to exercise in these clothes as well. Or maybe the girls could have gymnastic-style leotards? Having something like boxer shorts for bed is fine for the males, and a chemise (had to look it up) is fine for the females when asleep.

Also, did you plan on giving the boys shirts only for going into town/specific purposes, and have them shirtless at other times? Either way is fine with me.

@Aristocles
Oh! Cool. It's honestly just text on a picture. Easy stuff.

Eh, it was fun to say, anyway. XD

I was thinking the boys would have the shirts to wear whenever they wanted. If it's going to be a humid climate, though, I figured they would be taking those off fairly often when working outside, or even inside. The pants part is more me thinking, if you liked the orphanage being located more in a forest area, I think it would be unwise to NOT have a pair of pants laying around for them for special occasions where they need to travel through the woods, like maybe they take on odd jobs in the town or something when townsfolk request their help, thus earning a little extra money for their pockets? I know I wouldn't be likely to go hiking in a forest without a pair of good boots and pants.

Hmm. What about dressing the girls like the guys for training? Like, give them a day dress, then a pair of pants/shorts and a shirt specifically for physical training? Like you do in gym class in public schools... I don't know how many liberties you want to take, but I think leotards are a relatively modern garment. More Victorian era than Medieval. I mean, it's a good idea, but we would be stepping about three- to five-hundred years from the Medieval theme for those.

I suppose they could have extra clothes for forest hikes or something, but we can keep that separate from their usual wear. The halflings wouldn't use the boots, at least. Or maybe they are intentionally given no extra clothes for going through the woods in order to toughen them up? Still, if you really want them to have a pair of pants and boots for special purposes only (like the woods), we can put that in.

I see what you mean with the leotard bit, but it is an acceptable break from reality, in my opinion. I figure, we already have lizard children and the like running around, what's one more break from realism? If you still don't want the leotard, we can have them dress in some kind of training skirt and short leggings for the appropriate purposes.

How about a few in storage to be handed out upon request? I mean, either way, they could choose whether or not they wanted to use such protection. Ooh! Or, what about pants that cinch up into shorts? Just a thought.

Eh, to me, even in fantasy, it has to make some sense, to stick with one time period or another, even if that period is created with some sort of addition that would allow them to have more advanced technology. Like steampunk. I mean, it's fun when you have that whole old-timey theme going on, then throw something more modern in there for kicks. But, actually pertaining to this roleplay, personally, I'm against them also because of impracticality with how I imagine they would likely be training--that's a lot of exposed flesh for hand-to-hand combat. Remember, we also said there will be humans here. Even a thin layer of fabric sometimes lessens a blow by a small amount... Plus I think they just look tacky, but that's really besides the point.

Oh, I had an idea, so edited my first post on here. I would appreciate it if you would check it out and let me know what you think! I couldn't think of anything better to call it, so I plugged the title in there until one of us might think of something more old-fashioned sounding.

That's good. Have some pairs in storage, including long pants which can be converted to and from shorts. But those would only be for things like a walk in the forest, not everyday wear. And maybe they are encouraged to only use them if they really need them?

We can go with the dress and short leggings (or skirt?) for the girls, then. Leotards are out.

Bulletin Board. Great idea for the OOC!

@Aristocles
Sounds good! So. Lizardboys and girls: Loincloths, because you can't tell anyway. Humanoid Boys: shorts and short-sleeved shirts, with long pants stored away for those rare occasions when they are really, really needed. After all, some are dwarves and halfings, for crying out loud, so should have higher tolerances with that.

On to humanoid girls. I kinda feel bad about the leotard thing. Heh. If I get too overbearing or anything, just kick me or something. I'm running on like an hour of sleep right now in the past about 30 hours, and my biological clock doesn't like to let me sleep during the night. Didn't get much more than that the night before last, either. So I'm all kinds of mental wonky at the moment. I might need that good kick.

I totally understand where you're coming from with the leotard aspect. You would have to know what you're doing to be capable of fighting in a dress. It isn't impossible (and even easy if you practice enough... well, not you, unless you're training to fight in a cloak or are actually Scottish). With a loose enough skirt, people can even fight with great skill while in a dress, but it would potentially be a hindrance for a beginner. With the way you were typing, were you talking leotards for everyday wear or something? Anyway. What about having that extra outfit, like a single pair of shorts and a shirt shoved in a closet or something for the beginner girls to change into only for training? I don't think you said anything either way about that. If you did, my apologies. It would make seeing footwork easier, and eliminate the skirt mess for beginners.

Oh, good. Glad you're okay with that. Maybe we can come up with a better title for it or something.

One minor tweak: might want sleeveless shirts instead. I know it is a minor gripe, but that would be a bit more in line with what dracons (who own and help run the place) would want. The young halflings might have no trouble walking on the forest floor while some humans might complain of sore feet even with boots on. Although I imagine the common footwear the orphanage uses are sandals. Warm climate.

No, it is fine. You made a good point. No need to kick anyone.

We can have the girls change into that other set for fighting practice. I was suggesting leotards for everyday dress, but only because that's a bit closer to what dracons would use. Shorts and a sleeveless shirt would work for the more human-like girls when exercising and practice-fighting.

The lizards have it so much easier when it comes to choices, don't they? lol

The title for the OOC post is good. It looks like it would work for an open RP, too. So far, this is still 1 x 1. If we open it up later, we will have to make sure that it works for us first, then consider allowing more players to join.

So, this is the part we've been waiting for. I think we have it in a playable level. Although we should continue to tweak it in OOC, I think the time has come to finally start the In Character posts. Do you want to go first, or should I?

And we are calling the institution "Mystic Orphanage" in-story, right?

@Aristocles

Oh! Alrighty. My bad. To make sure I have this all straight now regarding the humanoids:

Boys: Daily Outerwear: shorts and sleeveless shirts, with long pants stored away for those rare occasions when they are really, really needed. After all, some are dwarves and halfings, for crying out loud, so should have higher tolerances with that. Humans and other soft-feet creatures are given sandals to wear. Nightly: A pair of light shorts for sleeping.

Girls: Daily Outerwear: Either a simple ankle- or half-calf-length dress or a blouse and skirt. Soft-feet creatures have sandals. Training: See the boys' daily wear. For physical training only. Nightly: A medieval-style chemise.

Did I get that correct?

Yes, yes they do. XD Darn lizardpeople and their simplicity.

You know, I wasn't even thinking about that being good for an open RP. Yeah, I can see where the setup for this could potentially breed a group RP, if it works out. If we did that, though, we would probably want to do sections in the first couple OOC posts describing the important parts of the mansion, including the building itself. I can add that onto mine as we go, if you want. Keep the ducks in a row.

WOO!!!! *Throws confetti in the air. Because I seem to have an unhealthy obsession with confetti as of late.* It's always a bit easier to work out the kinks when you actually run into them. At least, that's what I think! I don't really care who starts it off. How about whoever gets something typed up first?

Could always use that as a stand-in title until a better, more catchy one comes up. I keep thinking of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children with this. Heh.

Looks good. We can edit the title later if we feel the need to. And some of the "soft-footed" orphans might go without shoes in situations where they might otherwise use them, if they want to. It wouldn't be mandatory that they use anything like boots. And they are barefoot indoors at all times and in some outdoor areas regardless. We can edit some minor details later if we need to.

I could make a map sometimes down the road if you wanted to. Not for a few days, at least.

So, you want to start, or should I? We can play orphans as minor characters for now, and make character sheets for some of them if we like them enough to play them regularly.

Yep! Them's the rules in the house! :-)

I don't see a map being too terribly necessary, at least at this point in time. Maybe just some sort of list of the important places, and a picture and/or quick description of it, with a general location. Good idea, though. Maybe keep a watch on if the exact routes become an issue. Thinking of, how many floors would we want this? I'm thinking the dracon family would have an attic loft or something to themselves, and am imagining the building and grounds fairly large. And put the boys on one side of the house sleeping-quarter wise, and girls on the other?

I would love to start it out, if you would like.

You can start it, then. Having male-only, and female-only facilities (dorms, bathing areas), and shared areas (such as the mess hall) would work well. I suppose the dracon family lives on the upper level, in a much smaller second floor.

What important places did you have in mind? We'll need classrooms, a gym, a yard outside, two dorms, two bathing areas, a mess hall, a kitchen, some restrooms, storage space, and a few other things. Oh, did you want the orphans to get their massage treatment in a shared place, or in separate areas?

@Aristocles
*Blinks.* Second floor? Oops. I have them on a fourth floor. Made it a big place. My thought was fourth floor for them, third floor for staff who I was thinking it would be more convenient to have on-site, the second for the kids, and the first for everything else. Should I edit my post?

I think you pretty much covered it for the time being. I can't think of anything to add to that!

No, we can work with it. How about this: first floor for the students living areas and any really big rooms (like a gym), second for the classrooms and storage, third floor for the staff to live in, and the fourth for the dracon family who owns the place. No need to edit.

I admit that this is actually quite similar to how dracon temples work in my setting. That's a reason why I opened up the PM with you again. I didn't want to confuse the two things in this OOC. I will discuss this point more there.

Sounds great! And really? That's cool. Great minds think alike?

For what we would have in there, what about a sort of hospital wing? Maybe two small conjoined rooms, one with, say, four or five beds, and the other where our healer/whatever we decide to call them in this setting can sleep and store all his/her medical supplies. Which would mostly be herbs and whatnot. And maybe a spell or two hidden up his/her sleeve, depending on the character's race?

For another idea, what if they were mostly self-sufficient? Give them some acreage, and let them have a small farm and orchard somewhere around there. It could also provide an extra means of income, provide an extra learning opportunity for the orphans. They would still have to go into town every now and again to pick up some supplies they wouldn't make there, and of course for the orphans for when they decided to accept any of the jobs. Just a thought.

Oh, and I didn't answer the massage question. How about separate rooms?

By the way, sorry for disappearing last night! I started to get extremely tired, so ended up just signing out.

I understand if you were tired. I have a job too and other commitments, so it is perfectly fine.

A hospital wing would be fine, but the self-sufficiency part would be hard to do. The people living there already have a lot of duties. That said, if the orphans wish to volunteer by gardening in their spare time, that would be nice. I was thinking that this would be funded by a variety of sources, including the local government, donations, and rents collected on land owned by the orphanage (on things like pasture, farmland, maybe rent from houses on land owned by Serapis). One motivating factor for going on an adventure later could be to get more funding for the facility.

And yes, separate rooms is fine, but I realized two other issues. First, how many orphans do they have? I should have asked this earlier. I was thinking a couple hundred in total. Maybe as many as 350?

Second, since they all get a massage and there is only 45 minutes for it, they'd need a LOT of staff to care for that many children. I have a possible solution. First, increase the time allotted for that part of the day to 60 minutes, split into three 20-minute sessions, so that each orphan gets a minimum of 20 minutes for a rubdown every day. This would also increase the number each staff member could handle (or increase the time to 90 minutes so that each can get 30 minutes minimum a day). Second, have all of the female staff be trained in giving massages. Why only the females? Because it just seems odd to imagine an unrelated male doing that kind of thing. At least, to me. Females connecting with the children is heartwarming, males other than a close family member just comes across as weird and/or creepy. IMO, of course.

@Aristocles
Don't think I have time for the actual post right now before I get ready for bed, buuuuut...

Gotchya on the farm/self-sufficient aspect. And that would be more staff they would have to pay without the orphans manning it... what if the staff were payed with room and board, and a small allowance for necessities? Not sure if that would even really come into play, but hey. Gotta cover those bases, right? XD Sorry if I already suggested this or if we went over it. My mind has been traveling in too many directions at once these last few days. Heh. Oh, and what kind of currency do we want? I was thinking some kind of coin currency to stick with the time period. Actual paper would have been extremely expensive (with parchment being easier attained).

O.O Yeah, your numbers are significantly higher than what I had in mind. Heh. I was thinking around 100-150 max, give or take. So, what about somewhere between those two numbers? Two-hundred fifty, maybe, with 280-200 maxing them out? In that case, though, that would have to be one HECK of a mansion. Though not an original idea, what if the building was enchanted to be larger on the inside?

Increased to 60 minutes sounds good to me. Or, if I adjust things right, how about making it 90 minutes, but keeping it at 20 minute sessions? That would allow for fewer staff.

90 doesn't divide by 20 evenly. 30 is better. No one gets a shorter session that way.

How about a little over 150, in that case? It is easier to avoid having to use "dimensional magic" that way, like in that Harry Potter tent thing.

The staff can be mostly paid in food and board, and some of them could have grown up there themselves, and thus be used to the way things run already. As for currency, how about copper, silver, and gold pieces? Not the most original on my part, but it makes for easy distinctions between them.

And that is the math of a person who desperately needed sleep. XD Why not do it 80 minutes, then, with the capability of four sets? I'll do more math later (before I get too tired, heh) to figure out how many therapists they would need in either case. Unless you get to that first, of course!

Oh, and I forgot to touch on the gender thing. What about doing it males with males and females with females? I don't know how it would be for men/boys, but I think girls, at least, do tend to converse and feel more comfortable around their same gender. Is it the same with guys, usually? I never really thought about that.

The "dimensional magic" has actually been around a lot longer than Harry Potter. Heh. Would I be correct in guessing that you are a Harry Potter fan? :-)

As long as we don't call them knuts, sickles, and galleons, I'm good with that. XD Technically, that is a normal currency use in that time setting.

Do you mind that I posted my current orphans in the characters tab? It helps me keep them all in order.

Lastly, do you have anything in particular in mind as to what is causing the wars?

80 minutes with 20 each is better. Yeah, let's do that!

Most males don't mind females, but from what I understand, most females do mind males. I know it isn't quite the same thing, but I can tell you that women would mind men in a locker room far more than men would mind women in a locker room. Plus, women around children are seen as caring, men around children (particularly without supervision) are often seen as threatening. I understand that these are generalizations, but it is how it is.

Actually, quite the opposite. I hate Harry Potter and think that JK Rowling is a fraud and ripped off Star Wars, Willy the Wizard, and King Arthur.

In fact, it was a great idea on your part! I should do the same with my orphan characters too.

I was thinking we could call the coins something like commons (copper), nobles (silver), and royals (gold), each worth ten times the other, going from copper to silver to gold (ie, 1 golds = 10 silvers = 100 coppers.)

As to the cause of the wars, maybe there is a two-tier cause: a cause on the surface (fighting over resources, etc), and an underlying cause (it had something to do with an ancient conspiracy or a dragon or something.)