[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/bBp4Jik.png[/img][h3][sup][color=a99a6f][i]Dark Fantasy[/i] ☀ [i]Low Fantasy[/i] ☀ [i]Military [/i]☀ [i]History [/i]☀ [i]Drama[/i][/color][/sup][/h3][hider=Discord]https://discord.gg/dRE3xav[/hider][sup][i][url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/4886488]Click here[/url] to read the Interest Check (including an IC preview!).[/i][/sup][/center][h1][color=a99a6f][i][sub]Šulmu![/sub][/i][/color][/h1][color=A99A6F]_[/color][color=A7986E]_[/color][color=A5966D]_[/color][color=A3956C]_[/color][color=A1936B]_[/color][color=A0926A]_[/color][color=9E9069]_[/color][color=9C8E68]_[/color][color=9A8D67]_[/color][color=998B66]_[/color][color=978A65]_[/color][color=958864]_[/color][color=938763]_[/color][color=928562]_[/color][color=908361]_[/color][color=8E8260]_[/color][color=8C805F]_[/color][color=8B7F5E]_[/color][color=897D5D]_[/color][color=877C5C]_[/color][color=857A5B]_[/color][color=84785A]_[/color][color=827759]_[/color][color=807558]_[/color][color=7E7458]_[/color][color=7D7257]_[/color][color=7B7156]_[/color][color=796F55]_[/color][color=776D54]_[/color][color=766C53]_[/color][color=746A52]_[/color][color=726951]_[/color][color=706750]_[/color][color=6F664F]_[/color][color=6D644E]_[/color][color=6B624D]_[/color][color=69614C]_[/color][color=675F4B]_[/color][color=665E4A]_[/color][color=645C49]_[/color][color=625B48]_[/color][color=605947]_[/color][color=5F5746]_[/color][color=5D5645]_[/color][color=5B5444]_[/color][color=595343]_[/color][color=585142]_[/color][color=565042]_[/color][color=544E41]_[/color][color=524C40]_[/color][color=514B3F]_[/color][color=4F493E]_[/color][color=4D483D]_[/color][color=4B463C]_[/color][color=4A453B]_[/color][color=48433A]_[/color][color=464139]_[/color][color=444038]_[/color][color=433E37]_[/color][color=413D36]_[/color][color=3F3B35]_[/color][color=3D3A34]_[/color][color=3C3833]_[/color][color=3A3632]_[/color][color=383531]_[/color][color=363330]_[/color][color=35322F]_[/color][color=33302E]_[/color][color=312F2D]_[/color][color=2F2D2C]_[/color]
[color=A99A6F]_[/color][color=A7986E]_[/color][color=A5966D]_[/color][color=A3956C]_[/color][color=A1936B]_[/color][color=A0926A]_[/color][color=9E9069]_[/color][color=9C8E68]_[/color][color=9A8D67]_[/color][color=998B66]_[/color][color=978A65]_[/color][color=958864]_[/color][color=938763]_[/color][color=928562]_[/color][color=908361]_[/color][color=8E8260]_[/color][color=8C805F]_[/color][color=8B7F5E]_[/color][color=897D5D]_[/color][color=877C5C]_[/color][color=857A5B]_[/color][color=84785A]_[/color][color=827759]_[/color][color=807558]_[/color][color=7E7458]_[/color][color=7D7257]_[/color][color=7B7156]_[/color][color=796F55]_[/color][color=776D54]_[/color][color=766C53]_[/color][color=746A52]_[/color][color=726951]_[/color][color=706750]_[/color][color=6F664F]_[/color][color=6D644E]_[/color][color=6B624D]_[/color][color=69614C]_[/color][color=675F4B]_[/color][color=665E4A]_[/color][color=645C49]_[/color][color=625B48]_[/color][color=605947]_[/color][color=5F5746]_[/color][color=5D5645]_[/color][color=5B5444]_[/color][color=595343]_[/color][color=585142]_[/color][color=565042]_[/color][color=544E41]_[/color][color=524C40]_[/color][color=514B3F]_[/color][color=4F493E]_[/color][color=4D483D]_[/color][color=4B463C]_[/color][color=4A453B]_[/color][color=48433A]_[/color][color=464139]_[/color][color=444038]_[/color][color=433E37]_[/color][color=413D36]_[/color][color=3F3B35]_[/color][color=3D3A34]_[/color][color=3C3833]_[/color][color=3A3632]_[/color][color=383531]_[/color][color=363330]_[/color][color=35322F]_[/color][color=33302E]_[/color][color=312F2D]_[/color][color=2F2D2C]_[/color]
	Welcome to "How Far the Spearsong," the first story in [i]The Devourer Cycle[/i]. Proceed and you will enter a world of bronze and gold; of love and betrayal; of dreams, paid for in blood.

	Though wide and wondrous be the Known World, this time you play a little people, tucked away in one of its more obscure corners: the [i]Angaturiz[/i], the "sons of the clay," so named for the earth which nourishes their way of life. Of it you craft your houses, your idols, your art. Your ancestors are there, in that sullen soil, with the gods and the spirits who they worshiped for centuries, and who you worship still. Your halls are humble but warm. Your wars are short and small but hideously fierce. Even the tiniest "civilized" empires hasten to call you barbarians, though in the same breath they buy your iron, your strange foods, your pottery, the slaves of your enemies.

	Except some are no longer content with buying. Nhir, a city far to the south, has mobilized its fading Empire, thinking your Thraxian Mountains, your tribes, the perfect stone on which to whet its troops, to restore the glamor and glory of reigns past. These royals seem to have tired of giving their silver to savages for goods they already deserve simply for being Nhirians. The Mountains have saved you once before, trapping their armies in with snowfall and rockslides, concealing you from their hateful gaze. But the Nhirians field the most terrifying soldiers in the world; not because of their thick iron hides, or the disciplined rows in which they march, but because when someone has injured their king's pride they return the blow with thrice the fury, and they fight again, they fight until they have extinguished the victory and humiliated the "victors" beyond recovery. Their numbers never end; their resolve never breaks. Or these have never been seen. So does only a slow, agonizing, inevitable doom await the [i]Angaturiz[/i]?

	Not all have lost hope; not yet. While the eastern tribes lick their wounds, and make their choice—the same choice as faced by every other enemy to the Nhirians—[i]kneel, work, or die[/i]—the western tribes, and those already preparing for war from the perilous mountain passes, have all heard the same strange gossip. It tells of a truce between enemies. In pockets all throughout Thraxia the sons of dead men have forgiven their fathers' killers; countless feuds have ended upon a menhir and a wax tablet, instead of a battlefield. Far and wide the tribes have sheathed their weapons, listened to old grudges long and late into the night, packed their mules, and pilgrimmed together to the same place. Skeldefjarn. It is not certain how this was decided as the gathering-place for the first ever Great-Council of Thraxia. It is little more than a field, a menhir on a hill. The villages at its foot are ramshackle, and belong to many tribes of many allegiances, for the land is well-disputed; far from the frontlines, but days away from a defended settlement, too. But perhaps that is precisely why. They will not think to look here. If they do, they will have to fight, or sneak, over hundreds of miles to reach it. For the Thraxians are not theirs yet.

	Chieftains, heroes, and petty kings have answered the call, bringing only the finest members of their retinues as accompaniment. Their goal: to put aside their differences, unite under one command, and strike back with such ferocity to ensure that the second assault is the last. But not all differences will be put aside so easily; dozens of cultures and philosophies will clash at this meeting. Not every candidate for high warlord will be content to let another steal his glory. Moreover, the Nhirian Empire is sure to have more up its sleeves than just its hitherto-invincible army.

	Can the quarrelsome Angaturiz clans really come together to preserve their freedom, and their way of life, while the age of empires dawns around them? What comes after—if an after awaits them?

	This and more, dear players, we will discover together; for even I do not know under whom you will rally your warcry. About whom the bards will write their songs. Which of you will become heroes, even kings and emperors. How your decisions and your actions will irreversibly reroute the flow of this world's legends and history—for good or ill.

	What I do know is that this game aims to please the people who like their gritty HBO shows, their three-in-the-morning Wiki-binges also. It is Fantasy, but inspired by history—ancient history in particular—anywhere from ≈800BC to ≈100AD, if you need specifics—and will capture the appropriate moods to the best of its abilities. People's livelihoods here, to quote Hobbes, are "nasty, brutish, and short," whether owing to monsters and forces of fantastical design, or of a more familiar, human aspect. The world is not balanced, fair, or morally pure; the strongest nations and warlords may prove the most depraved, and will not coddle you simply for having posted a sheet in the Characters tab. This is not the game for a team of snarky superheroes saving the day in style. Some of you will perish, some not even gloriously, nor with any dignity or good reason. But if you do survive, and you have both a vision and the will to see it done, then your deeds may just become permanent fixtures of the [i]Devourer[/i] lore and world. If this game sees success then there will be sequels, and future players will hear of your exploits, be they wondrous or wicked; just as NPC's, in this and future games, will tell them to their children after dark, and sing of them by the fire. This is your opportunity to roleplay in a [i]truly[/i] immersive style; where the setting reacts dynamically to your existence within it. You are a [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_man_theory]Great Man[/url] and the world awaits your orders.

	This game will feature several mechanical novelties, unique among RPGuild roleplays. Chiefly these are:
[h3][color=a99a6f][list][*]This game will feature no, or minimal, Greco-Roman influences.[/list][/color][/h3][indent][indent][indent]	Remember when I said this Fantasy game is heavily history-inspired? Specifically I meant the late-Bronze Age, early-Iron Age societies which often go overlooked in Ancient-tagged RP games. In the case of [i]Devourer[/i] this includes (and is not limited to) Scythians and Huns, Parthians and Persians, Franks, Suebi (and other Germanic/Scandinavian proto-peoples), Egyptians, Africans, and even a few New World influences.

	Naturally these are not 1:1 translations, as I have brought my own creativity into making these historical peoples fit into a true Fantasy setting (albeit one which feels very much like their own world may have felt). But what this means is simple: when designing your character, and (if it suits you) when giving him a unique and engaging society somewhere on the map, not permitted are any phalanxes, togas, Triumphs, Corinthian helmets and cuirasses, legionary cohorts, etc. Enough of this exists in other games and frankly I find them quite tiring by now. I think you will agree when you have had a taste of what else this blood-and-sand setting can offer.[/indent][/indent][/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][list][*]Magic and monsters work differently here.[/list][/color][/h3][indent][indent][indent]	Any and all supernatural forces within the [i]Devourer[/i] canon are designed, like so many other elements, to reflect the beliefs and understandings of the distant past. This begins and ends with the keystone of ancient society: religion. I will not tell you which gods are real and which are not because no such answer awaits you. Every god exists as long as enough men continue to believe in him. And he is the fount from which all their powers flow.

	Only a god can bestow magical favors, and first you must ingratiate yourself to him. Some methods of earning this favor will be more effective than others, depending on his disposition and his place in the pantheon. Conversion of unbelievers and heretics is a surer method than most. Many gods like conquest as it brings glory and recognition to their names while it is done in their honor. Sacrifices, offerings, and rituals, meanwhile, depend on the frequency with which they are given, and also the quality, which means their worth to the practitioner. Burning your enemies' children will not bring you much favor, as they are a sanctimonious gesture; they mean little to you. Meanwhile the man who can burn large stores of food, his finest weapons and horses, even his own family, [i]can[/i] bring in far greater boons.

	No one knows whether a sacrifice has worked until the crucial moment arrives: the rains which will save your harvests from drought, a decisive victory in the crucial battle, a great misfortune befalling your greatest foe. Because the gods are fickle and because men often misjudge the sacrifices necessary to receive a gift of true salvation. Thus, these important and costly decisions are left almost entirely to the men who are sure to have the gods' undivided attention: priests, kings, prophets. They who can gather flocks a hundred-thousand strong, who speak and are heard by millions, who make men obey and believe, are the most blessed of all, when their works are good. And they alone can [i]guarantee[/i] magical favors, if they assume the right costs ...

	Magic is a subtle thing here. You cannot see it (no fireballs, glowing sigils, flaming swords, Force Lightning, etc.). But you can feel it. It's in the air when your emperor delivers a rousing speech. It buzzes on the breeze while arrows and javelins fly. It brings the storms, floods, and plagues which can save a nation or ruin it. It is not "power" in the traditional sense, but a force of nature, like luck, or fate, which in effect can be bribed.[/indent][/indent][/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][list][*]Collaboration (including joining the Discord channel) is [i]not optional[/i]. The game's social system depends on it.[/list][/color][/h3][indent][indent][indent]	Roleplaying to our greatest potential is a tricky business because it's all too easy to approach the narrative from an emotionally detached perspective; a min-maxing, self-serving sort of angle. "Well, if the tribes need to unite to beat the empire, then let's unite." We will "win" the game then but we will have done so without drama, the essential ingredient to an excellent story. And to join this game is to join me in the ranks of those who want to tell excellent stories. We are not mere hobbyists or colleagues here, but co-authors, all contributing to make the narrative great for everyone involved.

	One solution I've devised begins in post-signup. Once everyone has been accepted, each player will be assigned to at least two reputations/relationships with his fellow players: one positive (meaning you like this character), one negative (meaning you dislike him), alluding to histories your characters share from past encounters. (Remember, the tribes are not used to getting along.) [i]Why[/i] you like or dislike someone is entirely up to the collaboration between you and your "partner": maybe he killed your brother. Maybe he fled from a battle, causing your side to fall in defeat. Maybe you and he just fundamentally disagree on something. Maybe he just [i]feels[/i] wrong from the moment you meet him. Whatever the case, your character enters the great-council with a certain history, and certain prejudices.

	Some of these relationships will be mutual. Some won't. Some will cross national or tribal lines while others will betray the trust of those nearest you. The GM will decide according to what seems like it will result in the juiciest drama.

	([u][b]Please note:[/b][/u] these social assignments [b][u]DO NOT[/u][/b] predetermine how your relationships will unfold over the course of the story; merely how they begin! Only you can decide whether your rivals and enemies have succeeded in winning back your trust, and whether your "friends" still deserve your respect and obedience after what they have done over the course of the story.)

	If you were not assigned to a certain player then you have never met him before, and your relationship with him is thus a blank slate. Or, alternatively, you can collaborate with him as well, to further complexify your characters' histories. But any relations which the GM does not assign are completely optional.

	Please remember the rules and etiquettes for metagaming. Players are not welcome here who will let IC enmities influence their opinions of their fellow players.[/indent][/indent][/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][list][*]All characters will be leadership material, but not all will be leaders.[/list][/color][/h3][indent][indent][indent]	Furthermore, I am maintaining a certain ratio of characters over the course of this game.

	All the important voices at the great-council will come from leaders: chiefs, priests, and petty-kings predominantly. But to ensure that every voice carries a certain degree of rapport, and that player interests will clash in a more satisfying way, at least two [i]retainers[/i] will be assigned to each chief. Thus for every PC who is a ruler, two more will be trusted followers, including commanders, confidants, advisors, bodyguards, etc. So for a cast of twelve players I will allow up to four chieftains, for example.

	You can collaborate and agree on who gets to be a chief, or the GM can assign you to certain spots as they are needed. Accordingly you should design your character sheets with some degree of fluidity; you are important to your tribe, no doubt, but not [i]necessarily[/i] its primary leader. If you are unsure of where you want to be placed, or where you will be needed, then your app can be accepted with this section left blank.

	You need not necessarily be from the same tribe as your chief/retainers (foreign sellswords, for example, can be accepted, as long as their chieftains' players have written in good reasons for trusting them). You need not stay in their employ over the course of the story, either. But you will [i]begin[/i] the game as a solid, relatively unified micro-faction, and whether you rise to the top together, or kneel to another, or fracture and fall, will be up to the three of you as a team. Help your leader rise to greatness; overthrow him and replace him yourself; or sell your tribe to another. The choice is yours.[/indent][/indent][/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][list][*]Want to get another player "out of the picture"? Here's how.[/list][/color][/h3][indent][indent][indent]	I've seen enough IC rivalries, wars, and betrayals to know that there are few things in RP more satisfying than a well-timed and genuinely shocking death. I also know nothing has caused more frustration or longer OOC shouting-matches. People grow fond of their characters and will not put them down (a sort of betrayal in itself, if the feelings it elicits are to be believed) without a fight. As such conflicts will be inevitable in this game, the process has been heavily modified both to minimize OOC drama and to make inter-tribal violence a source of mystery and dramatic tension all its own.

	To summarize, the player who wishes to organize another character's death will first contact the GM via PM to request a logistical report, containing many factors which will help to plan the assassination. These may include weather and lighting, security, suspicions, routines, etc. When the GM has acknowledged this request the player will then fill out a short application and send it, again, [b]anonymously[/b], to the GM, who will decide whether the attack succeeded or failed based on a number of factors. The app can be perused here:[indent][hider=][indent][list][*][b]Contractor:[/b] (On whose behalf has this assassination been organized? Who wants someone dead?)[*][b]Operative:[/b] (If a different person) (Who will actually be carrying out the assassination?)[*][b]Primary Murder Weapon:[/b][*][b]Misc. Weapons, Tools, & Equipment:[/b] (Including any camouflage/disguises)[*][b]Plan Outline:[/b] (Roughly describe the sequence of events as it has been planned between the assassin and his master IC. When and where will it happen? Any variables that have been accounted for? Is evidence being hidden, or a drop weapon being planted? Do you have to slip past a guard patrol route or a locked door? The more thorough this section is, the likelier the plan is to succeed.)[/list][/indent][/hider][/indent]	At no point through this OOC process will anyone but the GM, the Contractor, and (if he is a different character) the Operative know that this process is underway, at least until the plan has come to full fruition, or someone has talked IC. In any case players are all but certain in any game to want to defend their characters from an untimely fate, sometimes justifiably, always passionately. These passions can easily result in the wrong types of conflict, the ones which make enemies out of players rather than characters, so this method of crowd control is designed to let a smart, thorough, well-executed plan culminate in its rightful results; and, by contrast, to let the right characters (the ones who were adequately prepared, paranoid, and/or lucky) survive to take their vengeance another day.[/indent][/indent][/indent]

	As for me, I obviously need to be trustworthy with these matters. The first step toward this end is removing any and all personal stakes from my own RP. As a result, although I will be playing a multitude of NPC's, no one character will become a designated DMPC. I will not participate in the politics of the game except as a diverse array of background voices, ones which will not overshadow player agency (unless to respond to overwhelmingly foolish choices). I do hold myself to the Advanced standard of writing, and have over half a decade of GMing experience under my belt. My longest and most successful project lasted three years on the RPing server of a popular MMO. But I am also pushing myself to become even better, so this will be my most ambitious project to date, and I will be accepting and actively seeking out your suggestions throughout: whether for writing, for planning/organizing, or even for a cool story beat you thought up for your character.


[center][sub][h1][color=413b2b]𒐼𒈬[/color][/h1][/sub][sup][h1][color=a99a6f]Rules[/color][/h1][/sup][color=#2E2C2C]_[/color][color=#34312F]_[/color][color=#3A3733]_[/color][color=#413D36]_[/color][color=#47433A]_[/color][color=#4E483D]_[/color][color=#544E41]_[/color][color=#5B5444]_[/color][color=#615A48]_[/color][color=#68604B]_[/color][color=#6E654F]_[/color][color=#756B52]_[/color][color=#7B7156]_[/color][color=#827759]_[/color][color=#887D5D]_[/color][color=#8F8260]_[/color][color=#958864]_[/color][color=#9C8E67]_[/color][color=#A2946B]_[/color][color=#A9996F]_[/color][color=#A2946B]_[/color][color=#9C8E67]_[/color][color=#958864]_[/color][color=#8F8260]_[/color][color=#887D5D]_[/color][color=#827759]_[/color][color=#7B7156]_[/color][color=#756B52]_[/color][color=#6E654F]_[/color][color=#68604B]_[/color][color=#615A48]_[/color][color=#5B5444]_[/color][color=#544E41]_[/color][color=#4E483D]_[/color][color=#47433A]_[/color][color=#413D36]_[/color][color=#3A3733]_[/color][color=#34312F]_[/color][color=#2E2C2C]_[/color]
[color=#2E2C2C]_[/color][color=#34312F]_[/color][color=#3A3733]_[/color][color=#413D36]_[/color][color=#47433A]_[/color][color=#4E483D]_[/color][color=#544E41]_[/color][color=#5B5444]_[/color][color=#615A48]_[/color][color=#68604B]_[/color][color=#6E654F]_[/color][color=#756B52]_[/color][color=#7B7156]_[/color][color=#827759]_[/color][color=#887D5D]_[/color][color=#8F8260]_[/color][color=#958864]_[/color][color=#9C8E67]_[/color][color=#A2946B]_[/color][color=#A9996F]_[/color][color=#A2946B]_[/color][color=#9C8E67]_[/color][color=#958864]_[/color][color=#8F8260]_[/color][color=#887D5D]_[/color][color=#827759]_[/color][color=#7B7156]_[/color][color=#756B52]_[/color][color=#6E654F]_[/color][color=#68604B]_[/color][color=#615A48]_[/color][color=#5B5444]_[/color][color=#544E41]_[/color][color=#4E483D]_[/color][color=#47433A]_[/color][color=#413D36]_[/color][color=#3A3733]_[/color][color=#34312F]_[/color][color=#2E2C2C]_[/color][/center][hider=Rules & Etiquettes][indent][hider=Violations for which I can reject your character sheet][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Rule #1: Read the Rules[/u][/color][/h3][center][img]https://media1.tenor.com/images/6863669abb7bb57c71886bc8cbfb274f/tenor.gif?itemid=4884859[/img]
[sup]You're one for one so far![/sup][/center][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Rule #2: On Images[/u][/color][/h3][indent]	Quite a prominent challenge in developing this game has been finding an abundance of decent images which fit both the time period I wish to emulate [i]and[/i] a sufficient degree of the "realism" or practicality which I want from my world. The aesthetic is extremely important to the feel of this game, which while not an historical experience is all too much inspired by historical events, cultures, and people. Thus the suitability of an image is of tantamount importance to the overall quality of a character.

	Below are the parameters on image use. If you do not wish to meet them, or cannot meet them with the images you like, you may use [url=https://i.pinimg.com/originals/42/39/21/4239215cb35496a1fca5f085490a9845.jpg]period art[/url] to cast rather an abstract bearing over your character; or you may use written descriptions as a substitute for image files entirely.

	No Greek or Roman influences wheresoever possible. No Caesar, no Alexander, no Macedonian phalanxes, no Roman legions. You can go to any other "Ancient"-tagged game for your fill of this. The aim of [i]this[/i] game is to emulate [i]other[/i] cultural interactions of the period, the ones oft-overlooked. (Just about anything else is fair game from the late Bronze Age to very early AD.)

	No blatantly stereotyped imagery. As this world is a proxy for the Mediterranean and the "Near East" this will mostly mean turbans, curved daggers, curly shoes, and that sort of thing. Think [i]Aladdin[/i]. Now, by all means make your character a huge racist if you'd like, who spreads stories of such things about other cultures, but I don't want any stereotypes actually walking around the world, least of all any anachronistic ones.

	Make sure the clothing and equipment look at least "plausible" as practical fashions if not outright historically accurate. I won't reject your image for minor anachronisms but these can easily go too far and become glaring, with an asymmetrical pauldron here, a scimitar there ...

	No Marvel actors, catwalk supermodels, or sassy tumblr gifs as faceclaims. You know the look. They represent ridiculous ultra-manicured 21[sup]st[/sup] Century beauty standards which should be rare if not entirely impossible from such a setting as this. I aim to capture a diverse range of characters in all matters, [i]including[/i] physical beauty, and nobody should be without his disease, his parasite, his wound or scar, his deformity, his imperfection. (Obviously few fantasy character portraits will actually reflect this, but the principle stands: a little ugliness goes a long way in making the cast feel more human and less silly power fantasy.) If you genuinely want to play a drop-dead gorgeous faceclaim then the onus is on you to create a character to match; they simply are not the default look in this world. That's all.

	No anime or other extremely stylized cartoon art. Photography, historical art (including sculptures and busts), paintings, and "realistic" digital art are all accepted.

	If in doubt feel free to send the image my way via PM so I can greenlight it.[/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Rule #3: Give Your Characters Flaws. [i]Real[/i] Flaws.[/u][/color][/h3][indent]	"Your characters need both strengths and weaknesses to feel like fleshed out people." We've all heard some variation on this advice before, whether from a creative writing professor, a veteran Guild member, or our favorite authors' podcasts. What they don't always include is the necessary disclaimer: that these weaknesses be immediately pertinent to the action of the story.

	So Susie is afraid of spiders, or deep water, or long falls. So what? How will she confront these fears over the course of the RP? How will they change her as she tries (and maybe fails) to confront them, to overcome them, to change and mature as a person who has just undergone a journey of self-discovery and growth? If the answers are "she won't" and "they don't" then you haven't actually written a flaw; you've written a bit of Jeopardy trivia.

	[i]Flaws[/i] are as necessary to your character's story as wheels to a car. The story is not worth telling if she's not a different person at the end as she was in the beginning; if she is mentally, emotionally, and circumstantially inert. This change needn't necessarily be clean, or good; she can fall into bad habits, she can make mistakes which can never be undone. She can regress. She can feel powerless against old habits and the echoes of the past. In short, her flaws can fucking hurt. And they should, whether she's fighting relentlessly to change her ways, or succumbing to their cheap and easy temptations.

	For more on this principle please see "[url=https://www.reddit.com/r/DnD/comments/775caq/my_friends_and_i_have_something_called_knife/]knife theory[/url]."[/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Rule #4: Miscellaneous[/u][/color][/h3][indent]	I'm holding you more or less to an Advanced standard of writing. Your posts may run shorter than is often expected there, particularly during dialogue-heavy scenes, but I can reject your application for [i]distracting[/i] or [i]detracting[/i] in terms of its elements of style or grammar. This is a subjective thing and I cannot fully rationalize what I want to see in an app, but I will be fairly forgiving as long as you poured a sincere and wholesale effort into the project.

	I'm also holding you to a respectful level of [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historicity]historicity[/url] (or historical accuracy, if you so choose—feel free to ask if you're having trouble distinguishing the two) and to a tone befitting the setting, the "time period," and the narrative I wish to tell. I will reject any joke characters and any blatant, gratuitous anachronisms.[/indent][/hider][hider=Violations for which I can ban you from this and future roleplays][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Etiquette #1: The Usual[/u][/color][/h3][indent]	Mary Sue, Gary Stu, metagame, godmod, autohit, blah, blah. You know all this. No need to dwell.[/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Etiquette #2: On Consequences[/u][/color][/h3][indent]	I'm not a sadistic GM, nor a sadistic person. As a result, players' characters will not be killed without sufficient reason and sufficient foreshadowing.

	Nonetheless, some of them will die. Because in [i]Devourer[/i] you will reap what you sow, and sometimes what you sow will be an enemy, a grudge, a slight, a sin, a scarcity, a distrust, a feud. NPCs can betray you; your fellow players can attack you; but not without good cause, generally. (I don't like "crazy"/"insane" characters and never will, so you're safe from people killing you for no reason, but the occasional bad luck in life is wonderfully unavoidable and this may be reflected late into the game.)

	This is where I suggest that you join this game only if you have thick enough skin to let your character be shafted sometimes, sometimes severely, particularly if he has brought it on himself. (Again, a stroke of very bad luck will be rare.) This is not the RP to join if you need good to always triumph over evil and your favorite characters to always make it to their happy ending. Good guys are going to clash with good guys here and not all of them will resolve their differences peaceably.[/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Etiquette #3: On Adult Content & the Delicacy of Its Handling[/u][/color][/h3][indent]	Thematically this game is a no-holds-barred exploration of humanity's best and worst. The shit which won't get me banned from the site and/or thrown in prison will be depicted rather explicitly; the illegal/ban-worthy shit (ie. rape, incest, pedophilia, and really anything overtly sexual), though not written in detail, can be mentioned in passing as happening somewhere off-screen. This is not to shock or needlessly challenge anyone but rather to enrich, and render even more accurately, the experience of living in a world torn asunder by war, fear, superstition, and casual inequality. I shouldn't need tell you, of course, that conquering armies raped their enemies' families, or that pederasty was a common thing in Greece, or that priestesses sacrificed their children to the gods.

	Although this is not an "historical" game (in that it does not depict factual events) it does draw from historicity, and seeks thus to best simulate within this fictional setting the raw brutality often found in our own world's ancient history. This means political correctness, and 21[sup]st[/sup] Century ideologies altogether, will not be found here; not as author proselytizing, not as #woke NPC's.

	This is your content warning as well: if explicit portrayals of slavery, sexism, racism, religious fanaticism, authoritarianism, warcrimes, [i]and other sensitive topics[/i] might insult you then I would not recommend this game as an entertaining or educational experience.[/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Etiquette #4: On IC & OOC[/u][/color][/h3][indent]	Just because another character is attacking yours does not mean that the player controlling him is attacking you. He might hate your character, maybe he even has OOC motivations for leading the RP in a certain direction, but the conflict itself is no excuse to abruptly quit the game, to bitch people out, or otherwise to throw a tantrum.

	Just as I need mature players in terms of handling sensitive adult themes, I also need players who can reflect on their own behavior and adapt it the delicate situations which have sabotaged so many roleplays before ours. That means taking the game in stride, realizing it's [i]just[/i] a game, and not taking its events or outcomes personally. On the other hand it means not using your character(s) to punish other players for doing something you didn't like. It also means communicating if you do have a problem, or suspect that one is in the works; both with your GM ([i]moi[/i]) and with your fellow players.

	I expect that this didn't need saying as the cast has been pretty awesome so far but I do so as a precaution nonetheless. I don't want IC emotions bleeding into OOC and vice-versa.[/indent][h3][color=a99a6f][u]Etiquette #5: On Leaving the Game[/u][/color][/h3][indent]It happens. You can't stand your GM, or an argument with another player proved irreconcilable, or you couldn't handle the responsibilities as well as you thought, or other, more important obligations came up, or you simply haven't enjoyed the experience. I'm sorry to see you go. But whatever your reason, you should not simply dump the RP and wash your hands of it as quickly as possible. I have designed this simple opt-out process not only so you remain in the good graces of the players and yours truly, but also so the story itself does not suffer. You leaving means your characters are up in the air, and the arcs connecting them to the other characters are compromised. So giving the GM enough time to write them out in a satisfying way (whether that means death or miscellaneous) is crucial to the success of the RP.

	Simply send the GM, that is me, or the Co-GM (TBD), a PM detailing your reasons for wanting to leave the game. We will accept your request and either give your characters to willing players, or, if no one wants to continue their story, think of how best to write them out. You do this privately so the other players do not know that you are exiting the story until it has already happened. Suspense and tension are maintained. Everyone is happier: you, me, and the rest of the cast.[/indent][/hider][/indent]	Showing courtesy for your fellow players and consideration for their time and energy is both an easy and effective way of ensuring that the game feels accepting, pleasant, and respectful for everyone involved. I look forward to working with you.[/hider]

	With all these warnings and protocols behind us, I can finally say, quite simply, that I hope you look forward to joining and engaging with the [i]Devourer[/i] canon as much as I enjoyed writing it. And I look forward to writing with you, too.