[center][h1] [color=0072bc]The Mythic Court[/color][/h1][/center]

[h3][center]Mankind prides itself on its sophistication, on its appreciation of the arts and culture, on the complexity of its civilized society. However, mankind didn’t do aristocracy first, and it doesn’t do it best. Scattered about the world are lords and ladies that are quite a bit more than they seem. Some are powerful, some eccentric; some are beloved by their people, others feared. But they are all secretly members of races that have inspired awe in mankind since the dawn of time. They mingle among the humans, undetected, and take command of their courts. 

However, all their diplomacy, courtship, and conniving among mortals has just been practice for the main event. Now, the time has come for young lords and ladies to represent their families for a chance to either secure their good fortune or turn their ill fate around. 

Welcome to the Mythic Court![/center][/h3]

[center][img] https://pre00.deviantart.net/2708/th/pre/i/2012/031/2/1/castle_in_the_clouds_by_mad_computer_user-d4o967e.png[/img][/center]

[hider=A bit about mythic creatures][center][h1][color=0072bc]Creatures of Two Forms[/color][/h1][/center]

Mythic creatures are able to disguise themselves perfectly as humans. They can shift between forms at will, and any outfits or apparel that they wore in human form are magically “saved” for when they transform back, thus they don’t have to worry about their personal items being damaged by the transformation. While in human form, a creature’s magic abilities are heavily suppressed. A dragon capable of burning down a village in its mythic form may be able to heat some tea or sear a steak in human form. When using magic in human form, some physical feature of their mythic form will surface. A dragon would, perhaps display reptilian eyes for a moment, or gain a temporary patch of scales. Thus, to preserve their secrets, such creatures do not use their powers in the presence of humans. Their physical attributes, such as strength, speed, and senses, are those of a human, albeit a particularly fit or perceptive human. This also means, though, that they are perfectly mortal in their human form. Injuries sustained as a human carry over into their mythic form. 

All mythic creatures intrinsically know what species another is, even in human form. However, it is considered very poor form to address one by their race unless they address themselves as such first. For example: “We leviathans do love a good swim!” “Well, my estate has a lake that could surely accommodate even a leviathan as great as you!” It is unthinkable that a creature would disclose any such information to humans, though. After all, it would shatter the centuries long charade that the families have worked so hard to construct. Besides, who would believe such an outrageous claim anyway? 

Mythic creatures live longer lives than humans, typically as old as 3 centuries. To maintain their façade, they need to create new identities from time to time. Their human forms age as humans do, but can be refreshed as needed. Old Lord Pembleton just passed away in his sleep… but here comes cousin Jenkins from the countryside whom no one has met before *wink wink.* Thus, mythic creatures will have numerous human names over the course of their life, but have one “true” mythic name to go by among their family. 

Romance between races is not at all unusual. Aristocratic courtship is generally conducted in human form, for when creatures take on their mythic form they drop their façade. Interactions in mythic form are considered a huge stepping-stone in a cross-species relationship, as it is a showing of their true selves, both physically and emotionally. The means of mythic courtship are as diverse as the creatures themselves, but for physiological reasons, breeding occurs in human form. Birthgiving, however, is conducted in mythic form, and creatures are born in their mythic form. Offspring are not crossbreeds, but are of one of the parent species, split evenly. Mythic youth learn to walk, speak, and take on a human form within weeks, but from early childhood, they age at a relatively human rate until they reach adulthood. However, romances with humans are considered taboo. Not only would a creature have to watch their beloved wither away and die without them, but they risk exposing the entire network of hidden creatures to the world. 

Mythic creatures do not flaunt their abilities or use them to gain advantage over humans. It is a point of pride to beat humans at their own games. Negotiate without hypnosis, conquer without firebreath, charm without… well… charming. Thus, when in human form, creatures do their best to maintain a human façade. However, when there are no humans around, if one is among those they can trust… sometimes it’s fun to drop the ruse. [/hider]

[hider=About the court and The Emperor][center][h1][color=0072bc]A Realm of Its Own[/color][/h1][/center]

The Mythic Court resides in a place not marked by any maps. It is neither above nor below the mortal world, neither near nor far from it; it is just… away from it. It appears where and when it needs to appear, always seeming to emerge from a distant mist. No human has ever graced the halls of the court, and even mythic creatures count themselves lucky to be graced with a stay within its walls. It is equipped with every conceivable luxury and a staff of golems keeps the castle pristine and the guests refreshed. 

The ruler of the castle goes simply by The Emperor. All those that knew his true name have long passed. He is the only phoenix to ever exist, and is the oldest creature in existence. Stories say he was there when the gods molded the world. Now, The Emperor grows old and dies just as any creature, but when he does he is immediately reborn. None are really sure if he is technically the same person – only The Emperor himself can know that – but he has not changed the way he operates for as long as history cares to say: every five-hundred years, he dies, is reborn, and holds his banquet to redistribute the fortune of the mythic families. 

As the time of the next banquet draws nearer, those who have met him in person tend to dwindle, falling to old age. By the time there is a banquet, only the eldest creatures of each family have stories to tell of him. The reasons for being invited to his court have ranged from discussing how to deal with an impending drought, to sampling his new strawberry shortcake recipe. However, all creatures who have known him have all used the same word: eccentric. And that’s about as much as anyone can say to him. 

Guests in the court are provided with their own private quarters. These quarters are equipped with all the comforts of home, and the golems will happily make any accommodations that a guest deems necessary. And those include a dark, damp cavern should a dragon choose to rest in his mythic form. The guest hallway goes on for what seems like forever, and yet any who hold the key to their room are able to instinctively find it with ease. The golems will happily replace lost keys, and the keys only seem to work for their rightful owners. 

The banquet hall is the epitome of splendor. That is all that can be said about it for The Emperor decorates it differently for every occasion. The golems must work quickly for there are stories of creatures retiring for the night, then returning to find the hall completely unrecognizable by breakfast. Guests are permitted to roam the castle grounds as they like. The grounds are ten miles in diameter, and contain open fields, lush gardens, thick forests, and even a lake and river. Nothing on the grounds will harm the guests, however, they are warned not to go beyond the precipice that marks the edge of the grounds lest they be lost in the mists forever. The golems will always seem to find anyone who approaches the boundary and warn them before they make such a mistake. They will even use force to stop someone from passing the boundaries if they deem it necessary. 

At The Emperor’s behest, the mists will part and a path will appear. Where the path leads… well, nobody has told the same story twice.[/hider]

[hider=About the banquet][center][h1][color=0072bc]The Greatest Game[/color][/h1][/center]

Fortune is a force that permeates the world and fascinates human and mythic alike. No one is entirely sure what it is. Some say luck. Some use words like fate or destiny. Those to the east call it karma. What is certain are that its effects are very real. Those blessed with good fortune enjoy wealth, prosperity, and love. Those without will always struggle to eke out what scraps of luxury they can. This is not to say those without fortune cannot be happy; happiness is merely a state of mind, a perspective. However, few would argue with the notion that fortune allows happiness to come more easily. 

There is one being in all the world who seems to be able to control fortune: The Emperor. Whether this gift was endowed by the gods, or attained through cunning, or seized by force, none can say. Nor does anyone know how he manipulates his fortune. All anyone knows is that those who leave the banquet with his blessings prosper, and those that leave without struggle. The banquet is the one chance the families have to secure their prosperity for the next five-hundred years. 

At the time of the banquet, each noble family must choose a single young member to represent the best the family has to offer. In order to be eligible, the member must be between the ages of 20-50 (young adulthood for mythic creatures) and can neither be married, engaged, nor promised to another. Other than that, they may be of any standing in the family. 

All those that have participated in the previous banquet are dead, but their stories have been passed on. Traditionally, The Emperor will present the guests with challenges and award them points based on their performance. The challenges can be quite literally anything, and the points are awarded as The Emperor sees fit. Nobody is sure what the exchange rate between points and fortune is, but it is generally agreed that points are good. Between the challenges, the guests will be treated to food, music, and drink aplenty. They are free to mingle with other guests as they please. However, one piece of sage advice that has been passed down through the generations is that partnerships can make or break the outcome of the banquet.[/hider]

And, now that all that pesky lore is out of the way, on to the formal stuff:

[hider=Rules]1.) Don’t be a dick. Keep the OOC nice and civil. No name-calling. No condescending remarks. No passive-aggressive snark. Just, like, be cool. If somebody does something that annoys you and you [i]really[/i] can’t deal with it, PM me and we can all discuss it like civilized folks.

2.) No godmoding, autohitting, powerplaying, yadda yadda. It’s basic RP etiquette. If you don’t know what those things are, ask me. If you aren’t sure if something you want your character to do is allowed, ask me. If you suspect that somebody is breaking this rule, PM me and I’ll look at it. 

3.) I want this to be an active RP, so please post at least once a week. Your posts should be at least one meaty paragraph (5 or more sentences), and that’s a minimum. Your posts should be proofread and mostly free of errors. Typos happen, but make it look like you tried. If you’re having writer’s block, ask for suggestions. Wait for at least three other people to post before you post again. Otherwise, make a collab post with the person you’re interacting with. If you don’t think you can do all that, then this may not be the RP for you. 

4.) You get one character plus their entourage (See the CS below). Do not kill anyone’s character or a member of their entourage without permission. 

5.) Romance is allowed and encouraged, but keep it PG-13. If things are getting steamy, fade to black, take it to PM’s. Also, I will not allow any rape or domestic abuse, explicit or implied. This is supposed to be a fairly light-hearted RP, and those themes are way too dark. 

6.) Put your CS in the OOC for review. Do NOT put it in the characters tab until it has been accepted. Do not post your CS until you’re ready to have it reviewed. If you need a placeholder to save your work, use the sandbox forum. Once your CS has been accepted, do not alter it without telling me and getting approval first. 

7.) I have the final say. If you wanna talk about an issue or suggest something, that’s cool. I like ideas and I like to listen. But, once I make my decision, let it be. Also, I may add more rules if I need to. [/hider]

[hider=Character Sheet]
[b]Name:[/b] Human name out here (true name in here)

[b]Title:[/b] What kind of Lord or Lady are you? See the aristocracy cheat sheet for details.


[b]Species:[/b] What kind of mythical creature are you?

[b]Age:[/b] Between 20-50

[b]Gender:[/b] Male or female. Mythical creatures are one or the other. 

[b]Appearance:[/b] 
[hider=human form][/hider]
[hider=mythic form][/hider]

[b]Outfit:[/b] Describe the snazzy threads you wear to the banquet.

[b]Jewelry/Accessories:[/b] What else ya got? A diamond ring? A sweet pocket watch?

[b]Mythic Abilities:[/b] These are the magic abilities you have as a mythic creature. 

[b]Human Magic:[/b] This is what those abilities look like in human form. 

[b]Backstory:[/b] Tell me a bit about your character and their history.

[b]Entourage:[/b] Ladies and Gentlemen such as yourselves don’t go anywhere unaccompanied. You are permitted to bring a small staff with you to the banquet. Briefly describe them, and their duties. Note: your entourage will not be able to accompany you through all parts of the Mythic Court. They will not be allowed in the banquet hall, to participate in any challenges, or to meet with The Emperor personally. The guest will decide what room accommodations will be appropriate for them. [/hider]

[hider=Aristocracy Cheat Sheet]

Titles of nobility are complicated and steeped with history. Here is a simplified (and possibly inaccurate) description of the various titles of nobility. Have a title in mind that’s not on the list? Fell free to suggest it (though you’ll probably have to explain it as well).

[u]Prince/Princess -[/u] The child of a monarch. The first-born son is typically named the “crowned prince” and will inherit the throne. (Note: these are young adults, so let’s not have any kings or queens at the banquet). 

[u]Duke/Duchess -[/u] The highest rank of nobility beneath the monarch. They are of royal blood and may rule over a duchy of their own.

[u]Marquess/Marchioness -[/u] A title denoting a hereditary noble. Their territories typically lie on the borders of their country and their forces are the first line of defense against invaders. 

[u]Count/Countess -[/u] A rank of nobility roughly equivalent to a marquee/marchioness. Their territories, however, are generally not on the boarder of a country. 

[u]Viscount/Viscountess -[/u] A rank of nobility acquired not through pedigree, but through administrative or judicial position. Effectively, appointed nobles. 

[u]Baron/Baroness -[/u] The lowest rank of nobility, typically hereditary. These nobles were once foreign rulers, historically annexed into a country.[/hider]

Let the games begin!

Notice: It'd be nice to have a Co-GM so if you're interested, please let me know.