Rulers of the Southern Seas - New Roleplay Idea

Rulers of the Southern Seas - Not your typical Isekai

I. Intro

It is a world shaped like ours, but with different people, and different nations, and where Magic and the Supernatural are facts of life.

In the year 1648 of the Human Era, three Great Powers and their allies stand off against each other and the eldritch force that is known as The Corruption. In the Sunlit Isles (equivalent to the Philippines in another universe), the Kingdom of La Reyna (not a misspelling of Reina) has just secured its independence peacefully from the Empire of Lalin - Zaragoza, on the condition that Empress Urraca III is kept listed as the Kingdom's Head of State. Uniting the courage and craftiness of its native population with the steel, sails, and gunpowder of the Lalinesne ex-colonizers, La Reyna looks to assert itself as the hegemon of the region and keeper of the peace in the high seas.

To its south is the various 'Pepper Islands' (equivalent to central Indonesia) held by the New Alhakestian Sea Company, a faction of merchants who pursue profit at any cost, even if it means making money from human misery. However, their wealth and ruthlessness give them access to guns and ships as good or even better than La Reyna's, and unlike La Reyna, they can recruit additional mercenaries from their home country of Alhakestia itself, as Alhakestia had defeated Lalin-Zaragoza in a war just three years before this tale started. Will La Reyna be able to accomplish what its mother country could not?

And finally, to the west, the Malikate of Bertambah and the Rajahnate of Rouranpura have allied with half a dozen other monarchies to form the League of Free Seas (Equivalent to Malaysia, Singapore, and West Indonesia), which aims to drive out the Alhakestians even as they are suspicious of the Mixed-blood people of La Reyna, who are both similar and different and thus raise uncomfortable questions of what counts as 'native'.

All the while, a mysterious disease has been infecting the local animals with tumors that drive them mad with pain as they transform into monstrous creatures that crave human flesh. This disease also infects plants, causing fungal growths that rot them inside and out, while there are reports that humans are starting to be affected, gaining stronger magical powers in exchange for their sanity. 

For Roleplayer Guild Only:

You have been summoned to Maynilad, the Capital of La Reyna, to try and chase rumors of a lasting cure for Corruption.

[Work in Progress.]

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Okay, here's a summary. This is a Roleplay set in a fantasy version of Southeast Asia in the 1640s (Age of Exploration), which uses the IRL map of the region to save time and effort. Also, there is Magic (see below).

This setting is meant to be used for multiple purposes, but for Roleplayer Guild, it will be used for an Isekai Roleplay (yes, I know,). There will be a cast of five to six 'Main PCs', with a few players left in reserve or who are allowed to run plots of their own in other areas of the region whose actions will eventually affect the 'Main PCs' and their plot.

Many nations, locations, and worldbuilding elements (such as whether Magical Creatures exist) are left 'blank' for players (not the Isekai-ers' players unless they specifically request it) to fill in as long as they follow rough guidelines as regards to the culture and language of each sub-area (For example, the League of Free Seas uses Malaysian and Indonesian names and the Alhakestians use English, Dutch, and German; La Reyna uses Spanish and various Filipino Languages like Tagalog, Cebuano, and Ilocano).

Also, you can make up nations not listed beforehand, such as equivalents to France, Denmark, and [Insert Other Nation Here]; just ask me beforehand. That said, there are already China and Japan counterparts to the north, but whether they are united or divided is up to the players who tackle their lore first.

Now, for the Magic System...

II. Magic System

There are two disciplines of Magic, defined by human belief. However, in this universe, just because sapient beings' belief can make Magic work does not mean that Reality is relativistic; objective, observable reality still exists despite being changeable by Magic, which in turn has limits.

Traditionalist/Ceremonial - Traditionalists use words, rituals, and symbolic tools (aka items which are less practical than current tech; obsolete tools) in order to cast powerful spells that defy scientific understanding, like fireballs, instant healing, precognition, and blessings/curses. The advantage of this is that Traditionalists can use their magic right away, with just a word or gesture, they don't actually need the items they use, and they can do things without advanced technology or which are still impossible with current science. In short, what they lack in the reach and range of their effects, they more than makeup for by being their own tools in an emergency.

"Enlightened Invention" - Enlightened Inventors used to believe that their Magic isn't Magic at all but 'Natural Philosophy', and some of them still believe it today. But the truth is that their inventions, though recognizably technology, still use Mana, the reality-altering substance that allows Magic to exist in the first place. However, Magitech has one big advantage over Traditionalist/Ceremonial powers: Anyone can use it even if they are not an Enlightened Inventor and it can be combined with actual technology to create mass-produced wonders. However, the drawback is that without tools, objects, or anything resembling technology, an 'Enlightened Inventor' is useless.

In this specific RP, only the OCs/PCs can use both Traditionalist Magic and Enlightened Invention; either because they are transported from another universe entirely and thus have a different mindset and accumulated knowledge that allows them to juggle both forms of power, or they are natives, but are just that talented.

Mages (both Traditionalists and Enlightened) divide Reality into eight areas, six of which can be affected by Magic, and two of which cannot be accepted in very rare circumstances. The six 'Open Areas' are High, Underworld, Mind, World, Change, and Dimensional, while the two forbidden ones are Fate and Timespace.

High - There are many theories that try to explain High Magic. Some say that it is the power of The Divine, it is the power of positive emotions, channeled through the human soul. Nevertheless, High Magic is the power of controlling Magical Energy itself, allowing for the ability to see all Magic, to draw available magical energy from the sky and earth, create constructs of condensed Mana, fuel devices and create enchanted items, ward people and places from magic, and finally, the ability to create bolts of silver-white light that cause damage that cannot be healed by magic to Mages and Magical creatures... But not ordinary targets, whose burns can be healed as normal.

Mind - This magic deals with controlling minds and altering the emotions of both humans and animals, as well as creating illusions, and mental compulsions, and even erasing or editing memories. This can also alter one's own mind to temporarily increase learning time and allow for perfect memory, as well as create and program sapient AIs. A very powerful magical discipline, but its flaw is that it can be resisted with strong willpower.

Underworld -  Death is all around us, and the old laws against disturbing the ghosts who chose not to pass on are gone, cast into the wind. Nevertheless, the souls of the departed have to be treated with respect, but it is not the same for their bodies. Underworld Magic is the magic of Necromancy; it is the magic you wield when you want to raise an army of the dead, to control the shadows of the world, speak with ghosts, and strike people dead with one blow (this is a high-level spell). You can even use this to transcend death, allowing you continued existence in this world without the need for food, drink, and sleep...

World - World Magic is control over the physical elements of the world. Do you want to create Fire? World Magic. Do you want to alter Gravity to make yourself float? World Magic. Do you want to use lightning to electrocute a person? World Magic. Basically, if it has nothing to do with changing one thing to another, or controlling something that isn't wholly of this earth? World Magic is your key. Basically, Bending from Avatar: The Last Airbender, but without healing or spiritual arts and with control over gravity.

Change - This is the magic that deals with changing one thing to another. This magic can knit wounds and reverse aging, cause trees to grow fists, and turn vines into whips. This magic can change one substance to another, turning lead into gold, earth into acid, and fire into water. What it cannot do, however, is affect stuff protected by High magic, or reanimate/control beings that are already dead. That belongs to another school, the magic of the Underworld.

Dimensional - This is the Magic that allows access to Otherspace, which Traditionalists call the Astral Plane, the Spirit World, or the Otherworld. Basically, Dimensional allows one to create portals, summon and make contracts with Nature Spirits, and even, with enough preparation and magical energy, travel to other universes resembling our own. However, the drawback of Dimensional-based spells (aside from making portals) is that Nature Spirits have wills of their own and look very badly at people trying to order them around...

Note: A lot of individual spells are very broken by nature, and would fundamentally destroy the game’s balance if implemented. If you’re touching these spells, please make sure you have some limitations added to them. If you’re not sure, look no further than your GMs! They will be happy to answer your question/address the balancing of your powers.

The Forbidden Areas cannot be affected by Magic whatsoever unless you sacrifice literal billions of people or build artificial structures as large as Saturn's rings (impossible in a Medieval/Renaissance Setting).

Fate - Alters luck and probability and allows for blessing one's efforts so that they succeed, or cursing them so that they always fail or carry a high cost.

Timespace - Time travel, time stop, and true bullet time (actually slowing down time instead of just one's perception of it and ability to physically respond to it). Making physical distances longer and shorter without using Hyperspace/The Astral Plane. Flawless Teleportation where you can instantly appear without any warning signs, such as the color and light made by portals (which using the Dimensional School of Magic always gives).

Spell Mastery 

Pretty self-explanatory. Each spell your character possesses has its own degree of mastery. The more you master a spell, the less effort (Mana, Time, other relevant resources) it takes to perform that spell. If you have enough spells from the same school mastered, you can choose to make it a <Magic Area> Mastery trait. How many spells, you ask? That depends if you are a Traditionalist or Enlightened Inventor; Traditionalists can master any Area they have 3+ Spells in, and furthermore instantly cast spells in that Area with only words and gestures. Enlightened Inventors, meanwhile, can master as many Areas of Magic as they have Spells (which they call 'Functions'), but each Spell/Function has to be tied to an advanced gadget/weapon and they lose their Mastery when losing their device.

And yes, an Enlightened Inventor can put all their available Spells/Functions into one gadget.

How long is it going to take to master a spell: This gives me headaches every time. It really depends. From the length of an arc to the number of times the character practices/uses these spells. I’d say on average 1 spell is mastered every arc as a benchmark, but don’t take this as gospel. Use a LOT of nuances when interpreting this. We’ll try to adjust and accommodate your needs, just let us know.

Enchantment Rules

For Traditionalists, Enchantment requires High Magic and a spell that you or another party member knows, along with an item to be enchanted. Note however that the weaker and less durable the material is, the magic you can put into it is more limited; for example, oak can be enchanted to emit laser beams, but birch cannot. This is the same for metals, and the strongest of spells can only be enchanted into 'Perfected Electrum (more below)'.

For Enlightened Inventors, Enchantment is merely the creation of new 'devices' and the addition of new 'Functions' to an existing one, and they do not need High Magic to do this. However, they do need a workshop and materials and their works must at least look like technology or better tools...

Perfected Electrum

Electrum is a mix of Gold and Silver that occurs naturally but can be made by artificial means. This material, if treated by High and Change Magic by four different Magi can be 'perfected', aka transformed into metal as hard as a diamond yet not as brittle, and whose lightness is that of cloth. But the most valuable property of Perfected Electrum is that it can contain very, very strong spells, except for Resurrection.

Group Spells/Projects

Basically, multiple spell-casters with different areas can do things that would strain a single Mage. This also helps in compensating for single Magi's weaknesses in specialization. Note that Traditionalists can only do Group Spells with each other, same for Enlightened Inventors, who call their spells 'Projects'.

III. Miscellaneous Worldbuilding Facts

All religions in this setting (we’re not using IRL faiths for obvious reasons) are offshoots of one primordial creed: 'The Faith of the One Above All Thrones Forever', but differ in interpretations. The One Above All Thrones Forever does exist and the primordial creed is thus factually true in this universe, but his/her/their existence is less relevant than the cultures he/she/they shaped by existing and the story possibilities inherent in cultural differences, similarities, and clashes. Here are the various sects of the region:

The Saint Church: The official sect followed by La Reyna, the Church believes that The One has delegated his powers to various ‘Saints’ and ‘Saintesses’ who just so happen to be very good at Traditionalist Magic, which they use as proof that their talents are a blessing from the divine. Other sects just say that they’re very good Magicians who claim to speak for The One, or even that they’re not even that good; they just use the Church’s money and resources for extra training.

The Fellowship of Light: The official sect followed by the Malikate of Bertambah, The Fellowship believes that the Saint Church is misguided at best, and run by frauds at most. They believe that every human has been chosen by The One, that clergy are merely scholars who are experts in interpreting the words of The One and do not have unearned favors from The One himself, and that mathematics and philosophy are ways of understanding the rational laws that govern The One’s creation. Not only that, but their focus on cleanliness, spiritual and physical, makes them very good Doctors, and some of their best physicians can use both Traditionalist and Enlightened methods for healing… And only that.
  
The Wheel: The sect followed by the Rajahnate of Rouanpura, they preach that The One is merely the Soul of the Universe, with literal thousands of avatars which are themselves Gods and Goddesses, and that Humans can eventually be reincarnated into Gods, then merge with The One. They also believe that the existence of Evil will only be undone when enough Humans merge with The One. Staunch users of Traditionalist Magic, which they combine with Martial Arts.

The Believers of the Return: The sect most common in Alhakestia and the territories held by the New Alhakestian Sea Company, the Believers have declared the Saint Church to be frauds, the Fellowship to be partly correct but half-hearted, and the Wheel’s teachings to be unnecessary… Because they will end evil themselves by forcing everyone to follow the same dogma, laws, and rituals. On the plus side, they encouraged science and the study of the natural world, especially metallurgy and alchemy/chemistry, which led them to produce many Enlightened Inventors.

IV. Rules

1.) No Godmodding or Powergaming.
2.) Any consenting relationship between people of the same age group is allowed, whether it's Homosexual or Heterosexual. 
3.) Be polite to others.
4.) Please notify me if you will be gone for more than a week, I myself will let you guys know if I will be gone for that same amount of time.
5.) The GM reserves the right to control inactive PCs as NPCs in order to keep the plot moving.
6.) Same for custom factions.
7.) Your OCs can grow in power over time; one new spell for all OCs per 60 IC Posts (all multiple paragraphs long).

V. Character Sheet Skeleton

Name: What’s your characters name?
Age: How old is your character?
Physical Description: What does your character look like?
Place any pictures here (Drawn/Illustrated art is encouraged but not mandatory).
Important items: What possessions are important to your character?
Short Bio: Tell us your character's story up to this point.
Skills: What are your characters mundane strengths? 
Spell List: 6 Spells overall.

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Rulers of the Southern Seas - New Roleplay Idea

Letter Bee Filipino RPer
