On the shore of a silent lake sits the village of Rosashire. It has existed here, bordered on two sides by thick forest, for longer than anyone can remember. It is far away from the bustling cities, and seemingly far away from everything. In the centre of the village, surrounded by old buildings, is a cobbled square. The buildings seem to only be held together by the almost constant restorations. Surrounding the inner buildings are rows of equally ancient houses, and beyond them are farms and the lakeside pier. In the village square, two figures are talking. One of them is a middle-aged man and the village blacksmith, his name is John Adams. The person he is talking to is a woman of about the age of sixty by the name of Catherine O’Reilly. “Have you heard? Another one’s vanished” Mr. Adams claimed. “What?” Ms. O’Reilly said, “Who?” “Roderick Wilson, Allison’s son” Adams continued. “Oh, that poor boy. He’s the third one this month” [hr] Welcome to [i]Grove[/i], a mystery roleplay using a stat system based on one from another forum. It is set in the quiet town of Rosashire. You have recently heard rumours about this place, and undoubtedly many of you have only found out about this town’s existence through these rumours. People are vanishing in this town. You may have come here because of this, or you might be just passing through, it’s up to you really. [hider=World] This world is inhabited by a number of different sentient races. There are several nations in this world, each filled with a variety of different people. These nations have long histories and have warred with each other. The year is 1742, and the world is in the Georgian era. Homes are lit with candles, muskets have been invented and the industrial revolution is brewing. Electricity exists but remains a scientific curiosity and not something that has been harnessed. Many of the nations have been busy exploring the vast oceans of this world and explorers are held in high esteem. The oceans provide vital trading routes between major cities and many see them as a source of wealth. [/hider] [hider=Magic] Magic exists in this world, and is used by those who have dedicated their lives to learning to harness its power. It often requires a lot of training, and maybe a bit of innate talent, to be able to cast powerful spells. Anyone can learn minor spells without too much study though. Rituals are used to cast the most powerful spells, and often require ingredients, patience and help from other magic users. Magical artefacts, regents, potions, charms, alchemical devices, foci, etc. can be used by everyone for whenever they need to cast a spell without having to learn it. However, these devices must be created by those who have trained and can often be quite dangerous. Such items are quite rare. There are many different schools of magic, each with their own casting techniques, methods of study, sources of power and magical effects. [/hider] [hider=Stats] This roleplay uses a simplified stat system, based on one made by Solawind on the Minecraft Forums. This is mostly used to judge the abilities and power of a character and no rolls will be made, unless you want to do them yourself. The basic stats are: Strength [STR]: how hard you hit, how much you can lift, etc. Endurance [END]: how much you can withstand, etc. Dexterity [DEX]: how nimble you are, how accurate you are, etc. Intelligence [INT]: how much you know, how mentally strong you are, etc. Magic [MAG]: how well you can conduct mystic forces, etc. These stats give an idea of what your character can and cannot do. 1 is average, 10 is the maximum during character creation. You get 10 points to begin with. [/hider] [hider=Abilities] Abilities detail what it is that your character can do. Examples include spells, training, racial bonuses, etc. When giving your character an ability, please specify what it is, what stats it requires and what it can do. Each spell takes one skill slot, but related variants of that spell would not need an extra slot. For example, an enchanting skill would include a small number (say, about 3) of related enchantments. However, these enchantments would not be very powerful and the known enchantments would have to be listed. It is assumed, unless otherwise stated, that your character can use the weapons you give them. A skill related to that weapon means that skills is especially refined and would give an advantage to that weapon’s use. Each character can have up to one negative ability. This is an ability that hinders your character. If you have this, you can have 2 extra normal abilities. e.g. Flare (MAG 2+): You can produce a small flame in the palm of your hand Tracking (DEX 2+, INT 2+): After years of training, you can track animals and people using footprints and the like Poison Resistance: You are naturally resistant to poison, minor poisons have no effect on you and you recover twice as quickly from all poisons. [/hider] [hider=Inventory] Your character’s inventory is what they are carrying with them, it includes potions, money, weapons, food, supplies and anything else you think should be mentioned in the list. Money in this world works as such: 1 gold piece = 100 silver pieces 1 silver piece = 100 copper pieces Enchanted gear is available, but expensive. If you include a magical item in your inventory, you have to specify what it is and what it does. [/hider] [hider=Rules] 1. No godmodding, metagaming or powergaming 2. Do not make your characters OP 3. Romance is allowed, but don’t go overboard 4. Please obey the word of the moderators 5. Thank you for reading the rules If you are accepted, could you please put a copy of your application in the "Characters" tab [/hider] [hider=Application Template] Name: Race: (Human, Elf, Dwarf, Goblin, etc. Custom races require a description) Age: Gender: STR: (You get 10 points to start with) END: DEX: INT: MAG: Abilities: (You get 3 to begin with) Inventory: Appearance: Biography: (Your character’s history, 1 paragraph minimum) Other: [/hider] [hider=My Application] Name: Leo De Haven Race: Half-Elf Age: 25 Gender: Male STR: 1 END: 3 DEX: 3 INT: 2 MAG: 1 Abilities: Tracking (DEX 2+, INT 2+): Leo has been trained to navigate and track targets Scout’s Eye (DEX 3+, INT 2+): After training as a scout, Leo has developed a greater attention to detail. This makes him more accurate and more likely to notice what others don’t. Agility (DEX 2+, END 2+): Leo moves quickly and quietly Inventory: Clothing 2 Steel Daggers Cloak 2 Parchment Pencil Messenger’s Bag 15 gold, 50 silver coins Appearance: Leo is tall, standing at 193cm (6’ 4”). He has straight, dark brown, almost black, hair which which is cut short. His ears are slightly pointed. His almond shaped eyes are a dark, forest green and sit above a thin nose. He has a mischievous smile and a pointed chin. He has a thin, athletic build, he clearly looks like a runner. He wears a maroon shirt which has sleeves that reach down to his elbow. He wears a grey linen sash that goes from his right shoulder down to his left. On this sash is a messenger’s bag, it is rectangular and is made from leather. His trousers are a dark, ashy grey colour. He wears a leather belt around his waist, on which are the scabbards for his daggers and a cloth pouch. His shoes are a pair of slightly worn boots. He wears a pair of grey cloth gloves. Over all of this is a mottled dark green cloak with a hood. Biography: Leo grew up in a city, the city was nowhere near the size of the kingdom’s capital but it was a centre for trade. His mother was an Elf and his father was a human. He had originally been born in a village in the mountains, but his family had decided to move to the city seeking their fortune. They had found this fortune in running an inn, called the Riverwater Inn. As a child Leo would play in the courtyard of the inn, and when he got a bit older he would help out at the inn, often by helping to clean the place. Even from a young age, it was clear that he was an excellent runner. He would challenge his friends to a race, which he would usually win. He and his friends would pretend to a be guards and fight imaginary monsters with an imaginary blades. As he grew older, his parents encouraged him to apply to join the guards. The problem was, he was no good at being a guard. It was much different to pretending. However, the captain of the guards did see some promise in the young man. Rather than work as a guard, he was sent to train to become a scout. He trained at the Royal Barracks in the capital. A couple of years later he was a fully trained scout, although he did not have much field experience. He was trained to use his running skills to gather and carry vital information. He would occasionally carry messages to and from the various cities that dotted the landscape. Of course he had to defend the information he was trusted with. So in addition to relying on his agility to get him out of danger, he learnt to use daggers effectively. When he encountered a situation he couldn’t run from, he had a chance to fight his way out. Word about the disappearances in Rosashire had reached the ears of captains. It was deemed to be of little interest, but someone had to be sent anyway. Leo was one of the few scouts available at the time and, even though he was still fairly inexperienced, he was selected to go and gather information. Other: [/hider] [hider=Current Characters] Leo De Haven - Willowisp323 Markas - Grnmachine Aro Danius - LordofthePies Emma Miller - Total Seymour Von Carstein - Sudkurve [/hider]