(Will likely change the title name to something better.) [hider=The History][hider=HAIL BRITANNIA!][img]http://www.stupidedia.org/images/thumb/2/2c/Flagge_des_Vereinigten_Koenigreiches.svg/400px-Flagge_des_Vereinigten_Koenigreiches.svg.png?filetimestamp=20120801114803[/img][/hider] [i]The year is 2240, The 200th anniversary of the Holy Britannian Empire's rebirth and growth. 200 years since the third and final world war that led the earth into a state of poverty. The Then-United Kingdom took advantage of the fighting by waiting out the war, getting rid of the past problems of their countries and letting the rest of the world burn itself to the ground in their arrogance and avarice. When the fires of the war finally died out, the UK made their move, scavenging the remains of the former superpowers of the world and taking over what was left of the desolate world. Declaring itself now the Holy Britannian Empire, they instilled a one-world government they would rule, but was quick to realize...there wasn't much left TO rule over thanks to the wars. There were colonies by now who placed themselves in terraformed versions of the planets of the solar system, of whom they signalled to help assist in the earth's reconstruction, but none came to their aid, abandoning their homeworld to suit themselves on their own worlds. It was then that help came from another source from beyond their solar system. The Denari, a race of elvish humanoids from the other side of the galaxy, somehow managed to detect the drifting signal launched from the Earth and traced it back to the planet. Not used to the gravity of Earth, their ship does not make a pleasent landing, but the Denari inside were unscathed nonetheless, impressing the humans of Earth who witnessed this for themselves. The Denari were a peaceful race and came to earth upon tracing the signal so as to offer assistance to the humans and help reform the state of the currently battle-scarred planet. In return, the humans assisted in fixing their vessel so that they may return to their own side of the galaxy in the process. Both sides met their parts of the bargain in kind, with the humans taking an exquisite interest in the ship's technology and the unique metals it was made from. Upon the successful repairs of the ship, the Denari, save for a few who decided to stay behind for one reason or another, left the earth to return to their own home. The humans in turn took the knowledge they learned from researching the Denari, and among other technological advancements across the board, created their own intergalactic vessels to use, far beyond the shuttles they use to make for such travels. Traveling outside their Solar System for the first time, and using the Hyperdrive technology gained by combining the knowledge of Denari technology with their own, the first imperial fleet traveled across the Milky Way Galaxy to a more populated sector of the galaxy, filled not only with the Denari, but other alien races and respective advanced technologies. Most of these Alien life forms seemed non-hostile, friendly even in one way or another. However, it seems they were in the middle of a war against another singular race of alien life that was far more hostile and deadly to the rest of them. They appeared to be a warrior race known as the Karatai, a brutally savage species, but not unintelligent. They were driven by the ambition to dominate the planets of the system, and proceed beyond that into eventually the whole of the galaxy. What's worse, they had the technology and the strength to back up those ambitions. But the humans of Earth had charisma, they may have been new to intergalactic battle, but their experience in wars and strategy led them to unite with the alien species and together push back and defeat the Karatai, making them retreat to their home sector within the galaxy. The once separated planets and species of this vast area of space were now united together, merging their cultures and politics together with each other and the newcoming human race, making the Holy Britannia Empire go from the ruler of a single planet to what it is now: a Conglomerate ruler of entire sectors of planets. Ever growing as they expand even further than the 32 sectors they currently possessed. These sectors of space, each controlled by a core solar system, were each named after the mighty knights of the round table from Earth's Arthurian Lore, From Arthur, the most luxurious and home to its Capital planet of Excalibur, to Mordred, the original solar system that the humans all came from. For 200 years the empire expanded and prospered under the glory of its emperor and the harmony of its multiple races of people. But it was not without its problem; like any government on any planet, the empire suffered from numerous crimes and vices that created unrest for the people of the world, Rebel terrorists who act against the empire's rule, Alien races from unexplored sectors who refuse to give the of their planet away from them, often declaring war on the empire for that sake, and the ever-present threat that still existed and loomed over the empire's head, the Karatai. Still, the empire is made quick to counter these problems as they come, using galactic police and military fleets to weed them out.[/i][/hider] [hider=The Invitation]...They will NOT be our focus, however. Rather, our story truly begins on the Prime planet of Lancelot, the industrial sector of the Empire. [hider=Lancelot Prime][img]http://www.cgsociety.org/cgsarchive/newgallerycrits/g29/395029/395029_1290032742_large.jpg[/img][/hider] The Lancelot Sector served as the main production line for the rest of the imperial government; all the goods, valuables and resources are produced and mined from its planets and traded by imperial privateers to be escorted to whatever planets are in need or willing to buy. Because of this, it is no stretch to say that this is the heart of the imperial economy, making it a vital sector for the empire, hence the name. Most items of public society are marked with the words "Made in Lancelot." Also because of its importance in galactic economy and industry, this is also often a place where criminals often attack for one reason or another, and so has been made into a police state as a result, and said police are not big fans of the poverished poor. What's more, the planets are not exactly the cleanest thanks to the smog created from the factories of these worlds, and Lancelot Prime had the worst of it, the factories on it being more like cities for the middle-class than anything. It was something of a miracle that you could breathe in the dirty atmosphere and still be able to work around the clock to complete the quota of your work. Ah, but its impressive amount of pollution and and industry is not why you came here. You are currently jobless, but you had no intention of working in a nightmare working space like Lancelot. Rather, you came here because you found a note somehow plastered on almost every planet's job listings, and for one reason or another, decided to take a look at it. [center][i][b][u]HELP WANTED! Able-bodied mercenaries, pilots, mechanical experts, culinary experts, and doctors[/u][/b] The imperially recognized Captain [s]B[/s]. Morgan has req[s]u[/s]ested the [s]r[/s]eady assista[s]n[/s]ce of any and all able-bodied men and women aboard the 'Ty[s]p[/s]hon' [s]a[/s]s [s]P[/s]rivateers working und[s]e[/s]r the o[s]r[/s]der of the Imperial Armada and senate. You will be engaging in business transactions of the sometimes forceful kind, ranging from repossession of merchant equipment on loan from the government, and forging productive deals with other tycoons of the 'vibrant' kind, to missions involving extreme repossession which may or may not lead to the issuing of lethal force. In addition, you may or may not be contracted by the imperial armada to find and capture all naysayers, aliens, and of course the Karatai to be tried for whatever crimes they shall commit in the name of terrorism. Any wishing to be hired: Come to the Dark Matter Bar, located on Lancelot Prime's 8th city block. Glory to the Empire, Praise to the Emperor.[/i][/center] It seemed like an official, legitimate job advertisement directly published from the government. However, you are able to spot something odd about the paper, particularly in its first paragraph. It's difficult to tell with some of the letters, but you could see that some of the letters appeared to be marked with a cut on the paper. Looking in order, the letters that are marked seemed to spell out a couple of words. [i][center]B U R N P A P E R Burn Paper[/center][/i] The less experienced with the shady side of the empire may seem it odd, but may humor the orders given. The more experienced, however, would know this is about and so as told without delay. Either way, you light up the paper as asked, and as the words on it disappear and the paper is charred to a singed ebony, just before it crumble to ashes and scattered char, you notice a white chalk-like lines fade in from the fire, until they formed the outline of a certain symbol. [hider=The Skull and Crossbones][img]https://openclipart.org/image/2400px/svg_to_png/211414/1420411267.png[/img][/hider] A symbol that meant two things: Death, and Defiance. A symbol representing poison, but more importantly, Piracy. It is, in fact, a common ploy used by most criminal organizations; no smart person in any mafia or rebel faction would outright say their hiring members in public. So they disguise their announcement to make it look like they're hiring people for normal, legal jobs, while hiding their true message with invisible ink. Not only effective for announcing their need for members and new goons while avoiding the attention of authorities, but also in erasing the evidence of the announcement ever being made by burning the posters to dust, often using that to their advantage in trials against them, especially if the one to burn them was a detective or officer who immediately went to the location in question and arrested them for it, as they themselves would be charged with destruction of evidence and the prosecutor's case therefore becoming void. There was, of course downsides and loopholes made to counteracts this idea, but it is still an effective one, given the effort made to conceal it. Usually the outline in question is a symbol that depicts the emblem of a mafia, or the logo of a rebel faction, but the skull and crossbones in this case meant one thing: This "Privateering" job in question is actually a Pirate asking for crew members. You have no idea what kind of pirate is asking for you and others to join him, but the paper in question was looked especially well-made, one would dare say it even looked official, had an imperial stamp and everything. Either he was a master of forgery, had a master forger at his side, or he had someone within the imperial courts who make these for him, need it be by deception or an inside man. Either way, this job with this particular pirate peaked your interest, and so you traveled over to the location provided on the now-annihilated paper to join up.[/hider] [hider=The Interview]Which brings you to now. You arrived at the Dark Matter Bar, a typically rancid place befitting the rest of this planet's toxic atmosphere. Whether you go directly to it, or you get yourself a drink first, you look for, and eventually find both the Captain, sitting alone in the bar seemingly twirling a straw inside of a shot glass, and what you assume is the ship you are being hired to work in through a window right behind him. ...Neither were what you were expecting. For starters, the Ship in question did not look like your standard ship for a space pirate...hell, it didn't even look like a spaceship at all. If there was a word to describe it would be one of two words: [hider=Nostalgic...or Pretentious.][img]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/c3/56/f3/c356f3882a30b6c9bd1eb1334a7bc42c.jpg[/img][/hider] True to its name though, it was certainly massive, looked less like a cruiser and more like a dreadnought in terms of size. But even so, it seemed...impossible to consider something that looked made of wood to be worthy of space travel, to which the captain responds to such worries by explaining that the exterior is merely a giant shell, and that the real ship, 'less impressive' as he says, was inside the shell, perfectly air-tight and ready for space-travel like any other ship. The captain himself looked...Nothing like one would expect. One would imagine some old experienced veteran of wars who may have had all he could take of the government or society, or a 30-to-40-something pirate captain with a few battle scars, or at least someone who might be new to the whole piracy thing, but with enough of an intimidation to warrant the job or the ingenious method of recruitment. Instead, he didn't look a day over 18, maybe 19 or 20 if you look hard enough, but still too young for someone of his position, with an odd choice of fashion to boot, looking about as out of time as the ship behind him. Not to mention his...odd personality, as one notices with his spinning of that staw in a shot glass, and his...eccentric way of talking. Maybe it was his father, or maybe an older brother who was the captain who asked for crew members, and he was just sitting there to interview you as their representative? Nope. With a sense of honesty one might see in the eyes of the naive...or criminally insane, he declares that ship outside his Typhon, and himself its captain, claiming that "B. Morgan" was a false name to hide his real one, and introducing himself truly as Arron Marshal Falcon. (Yes, "Captain Falcon".) You may, or may not have the urge to immediately spin a 180, walk out of that bar, and back to however you got on this planet as fast as you can, if only to get as far away from this young, clearly mentally 'wrong' human as possible. However, whether you are still hanging around despite the facts of who your supposed employer is, or trying to leave, stopped by the robots "customers" blockading the exit, before Arron points out that that isn't a very good idea... As you may have noticed by now, this bar was filled to the brim with androids with Arron and yourself as seemingly the only life forms in here. There was a reason for this: Lancelot Prime's cities were also their factories where the workers of them all lived in. The bars here are more designed for afternoons and evenings when shifts are just ending for the day, but of course, late night drinks were not allowed so that the employees in question would not be rendered insufficient from a hangover. As such, a curfew was established for all life forms to either go to their homes and sleep, or to leave the planet and go somewhere else. ...That curfew has been in effect for more than 30 minutes to an hour now. It seems Arron somehow managed to hack the surveilance cameras and the androids, which explains their unusual behavior in blocking the exit, sneaking himself and his ship into the bar after hours and allowing you to land on the planet and get inside the bar undetected. However, he states that he can only fool the cameras on your way inside, and the moment you take a foot outside, you will be detected by them. The Imperial authority is always on the hunt for any suspicious activity in the wake of the ever-cancerous criminal underworld and the secret rebellions against the empire that seems to constantly be a thorn in its side as it has with many governments in the past. As such, especially if you are an outsider to Lancelot Prime, they will immediately suspect that you are making some kind of shady deal with enemies of the empire-which isn't far from the truth-and will attempt arrest you on the spot for curfew breaking and conspiracy. You try to run and hide, they will pursue, or put a bounty on your head, a bigger one if you already have one. You try to explain to them what really went down and they won't believe you; nevermind the fact that you yourself burnt the only evidence of your testimony to ashes, this boy seems confident that he'll be able to get away without a trace. You must not forget that if he truly is the Captain as he claims, then he DID somehow get actual government-issued papers to get you here with and is currently remotely controlling the androids in the bar. Either he is more deceptive than he looks, or he has friends in high places. As the Captain puts it: "[i]A piece of legal paper, a right place at a right time, and the choice to follow these things, is all it takes to ruin lives. You likely came here knowing that, but all the same: ...Sorry bout that, mate.[/i]" It seemed there was indeed more to this boy than meets the eye, proving that he was, indeed, the very same person who called you here in the first place. Having your attention, he explains that he wants to give you a job offer. If you refuse, he states that he will try to find a way to smuggle you off without anyone noticing difficult as it may be, further cementing this boy as your only way off this planet without problem. He only needs you to answer one question: "Why are you here?" or another way he'll put it: "What is it you wanted by joining this crew?" Before giving you a chance to answer however, Arron pulls the straw out from the Shot Glass, and seems to pushed its tip on your forehead. Apparently, as he explains, the straw will serve as a lie detector for him as he seems to stare into the other hole; yet another possible sign of this boy's insanity. However, he seems very serious about that straw because if you lie to him about your answer, he seems to know it, and when you give him an honest answer, he takes the straw off and returns it to his shot glass. However, no matter what your answer is, no matter how good-natured or dark it may be, it seems Arron does not mind, and continues on with explaining his situation. With no need to beat around the bush, he explains outright that his has a crew of several men and women currently on his ship, and originally had a few more that served as important lynchpins to the whole thing. However, those important members, for reasons he doesn't seem to wish to discuss, are now gone from the ship's crew, save for himself and someone else, and the Pirates all suffered because of it. Should you call out the oddity of this situation by asking why he can't just let THEM do these jobs, he simply says they "aren't capable" of doing these tasks, and that you'll understand when you actually see them. Should you question how your ship managed to get in that docking bay if he needed pilots, he explains he has experience as a pilot, but just barely got it here thanks to engine trouble and a lack of fuel, and would frankly prefer letting someone else take the wheel. Any other questions regarding this situation he decided to hold off on answering, as they were pressed on time. He states this one-on-one style interview is something he is doing for all people who came to this place like you, all with the same explanation of how things are right now, all with the same question, all with the same choice of joining or refusal. You already answered the question he asked you, and so says you are welcome aboard his ship, need it be to join its crew or to be smuggled to a safer place. Your ship, or whatever you used to get here but needed to keep outside, has already been taken to the ship and placed in its docking bay. Finally, with this information in mind, he concludes your personal interview by a promise: Join his crew, and whatever it is you want, by the honor of the black flag (whatever the hell that's suppose to mean) he will make sure you get. ...Starting with a merchant ship that he arranged to leave Lancelot Prime very soon with plenty of goods in hand. It seems Arron's key expertise is deception and manipulation, as he states that he 'advised' the merchant to leave at a set time, though he doesn't say the reason he gave said merchant. Whatever it was, it seems it made the merchant very intimidated to the point of paranoia, as Arron claims he's likely loading up some of his "merchandise" for practical use against criminals like them. Once the last potential member of his crew gets on board, The "real" interview begins for all the new members. It seems the Captain has made this situation a quite literal make-or-break, about to backstab a paranoid merchant who just armed his ship, with a ship filled with newcomers, running on very little fuel and a damaged engine. They either pass this test, ...or they die.[/hider] "[b]...A true pirate always strives to live on the edge.[/b]" ~ Arron Falcon. ----------------------------------------------------- So here are the rules: 1. The GM's (and future Co-GM's) word is the word of god. We may not be perfect human beings, and as such, you have the right to appeal, but ultimately, if we decide to stand by our decision, then it is ultimately final. 2. No God-Modding: A no-brainer in a site like this, I'm sure. So I'll make this short: You are not All-powerful, you are not invincible, you are not capable of destroying anything and/or everything with one blow (Permitted headshots/decapitations/disintegrations excluded), you are not capable of dodging everything thrown at you, nor are you able to perfectly hit whatever you aim at. You are not omnipresent, and you cannot control the characters of others. (Again, unless given permission by their respective owners.) One more thing before I move on: Time/Space powers are forbidden. 3. Regarding confrontation of the OOC kind: We all want to have fun in RPs, but one or two people having a gripe with someone or something is always a possibility. Normally, GMs would say to take it outside via PMs. But after reading a heated argument from a certain RP on a different site, it's occurred to me that we are ultimately a community, and if there's an elephant in the room that must be discussed, we should do so as a community. Therefore, Personal issues with posts or people should still be "taken outside" as it were, but if you feel there's an issue that must be addressed that could be an issue for everyone here, discuss it with us. Either way, no flaming rages please. 4. Since this is the Free Roleplay section, I only ask for three things: Good spelling, Good Grammar, and No one-liners. I ask for two lines minimum. Of course, this doesn't need to be said, but you are welcome to go beyond that if you want. 5. D.S.G.S.: A signature rule I seem to always have in all of my RPs, it seems. The explanation for this rule is simple: "Causality", or to put it another way: "Do Shit, Get Shit". Remember that all actions have consequences, be they good or terrible. You make wise decisions, such as retreating from a situation you know you can't win against (If you're able/in a position to, that is.), your characters will be fine. You make stupid or simply unwise decisions in your characters' lives, such as immediately charging head-first and guns ablazing to Excalibur so that you can personally try and kill the emperor immediately, and they will be punished. The consequences of your actions depends on the intensity of how wise/unwise the decision is. An effective strategy could put the enemy in disarray, a very bad move could prove disadvantageous, or even fatal for your character. Ultimately though, as long as you follow your common sense, you'll be fine. 6. More rules may be added if it proves necessary. 7. Have fun! ^^ --------------------------------------- Now then, a little info on the universe and the Empire itself. FTL: The main FTL device in question is the Hyperdrive, the device designed for ships to cross through light-years via entering Hyperspace. Shields: Shields are usually able to sustain projectiles of laser, low-to-medium grade plasma, and explosives. High-level plasma and heavy physical impacts along with excessive use of weaker weaponry diminishes the shields until the breaking point. Weapons: All weapons are, in one way or another high grade. High-calibur rifles, laser, plasma, the works. OF course as time advance, even more advanced weaponry is possible to be made. Robotics: The Robotics of the universe are about as advanced as one would think in a futuristic reality such as this. Communications: Hyper-communication, or hyperdrive subspace communication. Super materials: As the Empire expands, so too does the resources it gains from other planets. The ships created are usually considered to be classed by the quality of the materials its made from, even if that's not actually the case. Each material has its own strengths, but also weaknesses. Mental powers?: Yes Biotech?: Yes AI?: Yes Energy Storage?: Yes Information Storage: Info is stored inside Crystal processors, as well as stored via quantum computing technology. ------------------- Next, there's not much else to add about the Holy Britannian Empire. There isn't much to the government that some hasn't seen already in a corrupt authority. However, they are massive, as is their Domain. Their dominion over a part of the galaxy is divided into 32 systems, with several planets in each. Each system is named after one of the legendary Knights of the Round Table, including King Arthur himself, and each has their own purpose to the empire, such as being a center of trade, commerce, scientific/medical research, military, etc. The Lancelot System, for example is the center of industrialization of products for the empire to use, as mentioned before. With the exception of "Excalibur", the capital planet of the Arthur system, the "crown system" of the empire, all planets of each system is named after the system, with an Epiphet (Prime, Alpha, Beta, etc.) added afterwards. (Lancelot Prime,) for example. However, when the amount of planets in a system id larger than the number of epiphets that can be added, they become numbers instead. The "Prime" planets are usually the Capitals of their respective systems, except in numbered planets, in which the capital planets are "Zero Worlds". That being said, the names they are given are only that, "given". All planets do have a real name that they originally had before converting to imperial law. Eventually, we intend on showing the entire list of 32 systems that the pirates are open to explore. For now, however, it is a work-in-progress. One thing of note for all those who are experienced Mercs and criminals: Chances are you've been to or at least heard of the 32nd system of the empire, "Mordred". As Obi-Wan stated about Mos Eisley, "You may never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy." Mordred is essentially the social garbage bin of the empire. A system filled to the brim with corruption, villains, and criminals doing whatever they please. For pirates like yourself, you cannot find a better hub to gain knowledge and allies. --------------------------------------- Jobs- Pilot: [@Atroposer] Gunners (Full): [@luna558] [@Hazy] Deckhands/boarding party (any amount): [@Lurking Shadow] [@Kessir Tarkin] [@Warborn123] [@Windstormugly] [@Elevation] [@Silvir] [@Tal0n] Engineers (Full): [@KimmiNinja] [@ReusableSword] [@StormHeart] Surgeon: [@BKburke] Chef: [@Bishop] -------- Races: - Humans (Self-Explanatory) - Alori (Humanoid animals/"furries") - Denar (Essentially elf-like humanoids) - Other races are allowed. ---------- [b]Appearance:[/b] (image if possible, it doesn't matter wether it's an anime character, human or even concept art characters) [b]Name:[/b] [b]Race:[/b] [b]Age:[/b] [b]Gender:[/b] [b]Job:[/b] [b]Weapons:[/b] [b]Abilities:[/b] [b]Personality:[/b] [b]Short bio:[/b] (it doesn't have to be too long, but in depth characters are fine) -------- I hope you all enjoy. ^_^