[center][h2]Local Floof Back At It Again With The Trashy Romance RPs[/h2][/center]
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Yuuuuuuuup. It's that time again, folks. Fey's been reading too much manga again. Villainesses, saintesses, princes, knights, arranged marriages, dark secrets, knowledge of past lives or getting stuck in a groundhog day loop of bad ends -- dig up all your favorite corny tropes, because that, my friends, is why we're all here.

Basically, just looking for a fun bit of casual slapdash melodrama since most of my other RPs are sorta stalled out at the moment, and wanted to have some fun with some guilty pleasures of mine. Last time I tried something like this, it got too overcomplicated and out of hand, so for this time around, I'd like to keep things simpler -- just 2-4 people (myself included) would be ideal, though I guess I could be talked up to as many as six if there's a lot of interest. And, while I would like to revisit some of my old concepts at some point, I think for this time around I'd rather do a simpler plot setup than the one I tried before.

That being said, I've come up with a few possible ideas for plots and premises, some more suited to small group RP and some more suited for 1x1s. I'll list them below, so if you're interested, please let me know which ideas appeal to you!

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[*] [b]To Become a Knight[/b]: The most lighthearted and comedic of my concepts, inspired by a mix of RPG-mechanics novels and wacky, Twelfth Night-esque crossdressing hijinks. This story would be set in a JRPG-esque setting with elemental magic, roaming monsters and demons, and maybe even a full-on "Demon King" style plot with our unlikely heroes having to take up their swords to save the world! Not sure if there would be actual hard and fast levels or stats as an in-universe mechanic, or if it would be more like a martial arts novel with more vaguely defined "powerlevels" and shit, but basically it would be a comedy first, a romance second, and occasionally remember that it's supposed to be an action adventure once every now and again.

The "unlikely heroes" in question would start as a various collection of kid heroes, all in training to become knights for their own reasons. Could be nobles expected to take up the sword by their families, or commoners whose skills have given them the opportunity to climb the social ladder, or any number of other things. The only problem is... Well, one or more of these "boys" is anything but, disguising herself/themselves for whatever reason and trying to become a knight. Needless to say, regardless of whether this secret is kept under wraps or discovered by the other characters, hijinks ensue.

Ideally, this would mostly be a story of a bunch of goofy kid heroes growing up, coming to terms with each other and themselves, probably having a bunch of misunderstandings as they try and fail to keep their secrets hidden, and maybe having a few awkward crushes along the way. Maybe there'd be a timeskip after this first part and we could deal with them actually doing knightly things as young adults too, but honestly, I feel like it's pointless to plan that far ahead right now, so I won't!

I'd be favoring playing a disguised girl in this plot, and it could probably work equally well as either a 1x1 or a small group, whether that small group ends up with multiple crossdressers or as a one girl, three guys reverse harem setup, or, heck, just as a bunch of friends palling around without knowing or without caring about the whole gender reveal.[/list]
[list][*] [b]The Bastard Saintess[/b]: A more serious plot setup, better lending itself to more of a dramatic or angsty angle. This one's in a setting more inspired by Otome games and novels/manga [i]about[/i] Otome games, with some kind of miasma or other existential threat that can only be purified/remedied by the powers of a chosen Saint/Saintess, who can influence the weather, heal the sick, bestow blessings, the whole shebang. And, in many cases, those chosen as "Saints" come from specific lineages favored by the gods, entrusted with the responsibility of protecting their countries.

A child is born into one such family out of wedlock, and has the misfortune of inheriting divine power. As such, she must be taken in by a family that [i]really[/i] doesn't want her, and probably suffers a miserable childhood as a result. Ultimately, the story could go a lot of different ways from here, whether it's about her trying to escape from her abusive family and expose that the "Saints" really aren't all that saintly, or her getting forcibly engaged, banished, sold off, or otherwise thrown away and taken in elsewhere. Basically, a sympathetic heroine with a tragic life climbing her way slowly out of her miserable past and finding a new home.

I could go either way on characters for this one -- whether it's playing as the Saintess herself, or as whatever prince or love interest comes along to help her, or even as a side character -- an adoptive family member who helps take her in or whatever. Like with the first idea, this'd work just fine as a 1x1, and though it's slightly less well-suited for a group RP, it could still work for one. Regardless, the goal would be to have dark parts that are dark and depressing, as well as plenty of warm fuzzies to counterbalance them.[/list]
[list][*] [b]The Fake:[/b] This one's also on the darker side, and a bit more somber than just dark and angsty. It's also much better suited for a 1x1 than a group setup, so it's basically here in case interest is very minimal. The basic setup is as follows.

The daughter of an upper class noble meets a young knight of no significant estate or standing through coincidence, and the two of them fall in love, keeping their courtship a secret, and knowing that theirs is a love that can never be. The flower of high society, married off to a commoner in all but name? It is an unthinkable and unattainable dream -- one that slips even farther out of reach when the young man is sent off to war. He undergoes numerous trials and tribulations, surviving in the face of certain death, and earns himself a name as a hero and the favor of the the empire. Returning in glory to his homeland, he asks for but one thing as his reward: the right to marry the woman of his dreams. This wish is granted, and the two lovers are reunited...

...Except that's nothing but a lie. While he was off at war, his beloved died -- and has since been quietly replaced by a body double by a desperate, controlling father who has no other successors, and to whom the prospect of a marriage alliance is the only means of securing his ambitions. Now, the girl forced to play the role of his dead daughter is stuck in a marriage with a man who went through hell for the sake of the woman she claims to be, and he finds himself grieving for a person who is, in the eyes of the world, still alive and well. Whether they hate each other, or ultimately find comfort in this quiet tragedy? Well, that's all up to you.
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Those are all the concepts I have write-ups for right now, but if none of them draws significant interest, I've got a few more things I can add later. Anyway, that's all for now, so thanks for reading, and, of course, let me know if any of these seem fun!