[center][img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/617914243760783381/1189711540828508280/Untitled.png?ex=659f2837&is=658cb337&hm=1809587315b6ee823151e0375541aa18c5f4b29f951296e35b30c150c6fd6765&[/img][/center]
Hello, and thank you for taking a look at my first ever roleplayerguild post! I've actually been doing this hobby for a long time, everywhere from iwaku, to rpol (back in the day), to [i]RuneScape[/i] ([i]way[/i] back in the day), but as communities go quiet and prospects dry up, the herd roves on to greener pastures. I'm still looking for my writing soulmate. Could that be you?

I'm 29 years old, Central Standard Time, currently unemployed but searching. So while replies might be punctual/consistent at first, you can expect they'll slow down in the foreseeable future while real life picks back up.

There's no accounting for style, but in pertinence to more objective measures, I'm a Literate to Advanced-level writer. English native speaker; understandings of grammar, spelling, and devices are almost perfect if not entirely so.

I'm ghost and hiatus-friendly as long as you communicate. Life happens! I just don't want to be wringing my hands [i]wondering[/i] whether you're still interested; whether I should curb my enthusiasm for what we'd written together.

In fact, I'm really easy to communicate with in general. Not having fun in the story? I want to fix that! We can compromise, draw up new lines in the sand, ramp up the action or the romance or whatever it is that you find lacking. I'm sooooo tired of stories getting nowhere because one little detail wasn't exactly to someone's liking, they felt too intimidated to speak up, so they immediately gave up and skipped. I'm looking for something long-term, and emotional and artistic maturity are a must for any two people who intend on lasting as writing partners. Let's communicate. Please?

Also, even though I'm proposing several plot ideas in this check, and even though I've done a ton of worldbuilding for this setting, including a fully realized map, cultures, pantheons, etc., please don't take that to mean I'm not interested in your ideas as well. I want to hear what plots or character dynamics you have in mind! I want to hear all about that archaeological dig in Syria that inspired an original culture/society/people for your character! I want to know everything about your writing's influences: fiction, nonfiction, real-life history, previous rps, whatever. Basically, besides long-term rp partners, I hope we can be friends, too.

I think I intend to play a female character, but who knows? Maybe the prompt we settle on will inspire me to get my practice in.

And I [i]think[/i] that's all there is to say about me, but shoot a PM or leave a comment here in the thread if you have any questions!

[center][img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/617914243760783381/1189186300683751484/image.png?ex=659d3f0c&is=658aca0c&hm=bd9c8ab26a6dac92ba8b6342d9231775eae9d9af1267fce7b6ea12391c0c1315&[/img][/center]
As for you, my writing partner to be...

First of all, sorry, but you need to be a legal adult in your country. (Which can be anywhere, by the way...native English speaker? ESL? I don't mind mistakes on your end, even if I, myself, am always striving to push my craft.) Not because smut will be a primary purpose to this game, or even necessarily happen at all depending on the story, but because there will probably be depictions of many of the horrific things that people did to each other in the recent past, and still do to each other today. This isn't to gratify some sick voyeurism on either of our ends, but to create a feeling of [color=ffc302][b]historicity[/b][/color]. Obviously we will not be writing true historical fiction, as this is a fantasy game; but historicity is the abstract sense of authenticity behind a culture, zeitgeist, or event; in other words, crafting these so they feel like they plausibly [i]could[/i] have happened in the real world. Basically, you must be an adult so that you will be more emotionally and artistically prepared for a mature story. Not "mature" in the juvenile ESRB sense (just violence, swearing, and boobies, basically), but in the Cormac McCarthy sense; of exploring and experiencing true human depravities through a sociological, anthropological, pseudo-historical lens. (Did you know it would've [i]really sucked[/i] to be born in a time with no modern medicine, political checks & balances, or basic human rights?) Yes, this includes systemic slavery; warfare; disease, famine, and other quasi-natural disasters; (implied, not explicit) sexual violence; and probably more. Frankly, I'm far enough along in my writing that a sterilized, idealistic, History Channel depiction of the distant past only feels naïve to me now.

Second, you don't have to be an avid history scholar, amateur or otherwise, to keep up with this game. It's a fictional fantasy setting, after all. Even if your experience ends at a [i]Total War[/i] campaign or a favorite Sabaton album, you know enough to be able to engage with me. But you should've read enough, and written enough, and are far enough along in this hobby that you understand the rudiments of narrative pacing, character development, story arcs, themes, and so forth, and can apply these things to our game. This, infinitely more than post length, is what defines an "Advanced" writer to me. Frankly, if you can fit three paragraphs' meaning into just three or four lines of text, you're more valuable to me than the partner who pumps out half a book per post. Brevity is the soul of wit, after all.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that you don't need to know everything about this subject to reach out. Just enthusiasm for low-ish fantasy, and for the fascinating, horrible, beautiful world which can inspire it!

But what I need most from you is [i]agency.[/i] You'll push the plot along with me; you and I'll advance a dialogue through its beginning, middle, and end; you'll view every scene as its own microscopic story, where progress, whether external or internal, tangible or emotional, always results in change. We'll start our characters' relationship at a natural place and see where it goes, choosing platonic/familial love, romantic love, or enmity as we see fit. But whatever the case, I'm not looking for a sidekick or a henchman. Both of us are the protagonists; both of us shape the journey.

Other than that, let's get creative! There's no one archetype that I [i]must[/i] receive from you in order to engage with you or the story you wish to tell. You can play the hero of myth and legend, perfect save for his single [i]hamartia[/i], or the scummy, self-serving pirate/slaver/mercenary/conqueror. You can be the typical fantasy protagonist (strong, clever, capable of violence) or a skinny, sniveling scholar. You can be a shaggy barbarian, you can be a perfumed urbanite. I can't wait to see your imagination in motion!

[center][img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/617914243760783381/1189187575211110430/image.png?ex=659d403b&is=658acb3b&hm=9a450689bc5884b91670d589540311b50db4b52556c689196d7cfed84da0f84e&[/img][/center]
Before I get into the plot ideas I'm bringing to the table, a quick word on the nature of the setting we'd be working with: "The Shackled Sea," a subtropical inland sea looped on all sides by various cultures, settlements, and factions (which we can discuss and tweak once interest has been expressed), obviously Mediterranean-inspired. Of course, it being a fictional setting, there's no real time period to adhere to when drawing our influences. But between the political situation and the technological/theocratic ideas present, if I had to draw a rough analogy, I would put us somewhere around 600 BC in the real world. It's a time of old empires crumbling away to dust, and new ones taking their place, larger and more intimidating than ever the world has yet seen. Of woad-painted barbarians beating against the tall doors of ancient cities. Of fearing coastal roads for the slaver-ships, rowing the shallows in search of fresh bodies for the brothels and meat markets. Of some of the first monotheisms rising from the ashes of the tutelary pantheons they've subsumed...

Our magic system is vaguely, [i]vaguely[/i] drawn from the [i]Glorantha[/i] rulebooks. As such, everyone knows a small degree of mundane magics to simplify everyday inconveniences, but those who would seek to rule the earth or rule the seas must join a cult, dedicate herself to a god, and do that god's will on earth. Rising through the ranks of a mystery cult, she is taught the rarer magics not made available to common laymembers, and maybe the god Himself will begin visiting her in strange, dreamlike visions, as well...

Finally, [b]I avoided as many Greco-Roman influences as possible[/b] with this setting because quite frankly, it's rare enough that anyone in a given rp community wants fantasy which isn't the typical fakey-fake-medieval/Renaissance fare, and those few who do want something earlier [i]always[/i] want their legionnaires and their hoplites. It's sooooo boring, and besides, there was an entire ancient world to draw from, learn about, and gush over! So getting to know me a little and learning more about the Shackled Sea, you will quickly notice that while there are cultures and happenings vaguely inspired by the Bactrians, by the Scythians, the Numidians, the Liburnians, the Celtiberians, by the Phoenicians and the Carthaginians and more (and then, of course, slathered over with original fantasy elements), you will find no analogue for the Roman Republic/Empire, nor the Greek city-states. This is by design, as I hope I'm not the only fantasy writer who's wanted something [i]different[/i] from this genre for forever.

And with that aside, here are, finally, some brief overviews of some plots I'm bringing to the negotiations!

At the moment none of these plots have a preference in terms of which role I'd like to play. I'm down for either.

[hider=Plot 1]Ch1 and Ch2 are members of the same barbarian tribe. (Nomadic horselords or naked, frothing berserkers? Misty woods or scorching sands? That's up to us. Also, we can be parent/child, siblings, friends, or whatever you want.) Though countless foreign generals had tried, they'd never managed to conquer us or drive us from our homeland. So the young of the tribe thirsted for campaign as they always have. But the godtalkers spoke of the coming campaign season in urgent whispers, and gave off the sense that they were afraid; [i]truly[/i] afraid, for the first time in our young, carefree lives.

We should have listened.

The few survivors who weren't enslaved have scattered into the countryside. Now without a clan, a tribe, or even a village to go back to, Chs 1 and 2 must survive in a hostile, heartless world, while also fleeing the ever-spreading borders of the empire which did this to us. Will we ever find a second home to call our own? Or will we die trying?[/hider][hider=Plot 2]Same as above, only this time Ch1 is a barbarian, while Ch2 is the emperor/empress of the more civilized southern nation, intent on conquering the whole Shackled Sea to finally bring peace to its pirate-infested waters, its bandit-ridden hillsides, its cities crawling with warlording petty-kings and treasonous courtiers. The young, talented, but foolhardy Ch1 had gathered a tighly-knit elite force, and attempted an assassination on Ch2 in an attempt to prevent the war completely, when that effort failed, and Ch1 was captured for interrogation and eventual execution. However, Ch2 sees the opportunity to learn more about Ch1's culture through this prisoner; including, perhaps, the fatal weakness(es) they could exploit to bring this proud race under heel. So Ch1 is placed in lavish quarters, fed like a king, and spared the dungeons and their many tortures. But will Ch1 learn the truth of why she is being treated so kindly? And will her feelings for Ch2 complicate what she does next?[/hider][hider=Plot 3 (CRAVING)]A vague idea set in a massive, corrupt capital city; Ch1 is a street urchin, whereas Ch2 is either a fellow street urchin, or maybe a senator's/noble's child being groomed for future leadership. For this I'm imagining fairly low stakes, reaching no further than the two families who would disapprove of such a pairing if they ever found out; an "untouchable" forsaken by high society, and the patrician who loves her...a classic forbidden romance.

If you make a great case we could maybe turn this into a cat-and-mouse thing, between a petty thief and the heir of the guard captain determined to clean up the streets? Or maybe we're all in it together when the city is besieged and food starts to become scarce? But I think lower stakes are the right call for this one.[/hider][hider=Plot 4 (CLOSED)]In a place where men chop off the arms of children, defiance is a beast with two faces. One meets her barley quotas. The other breaks the blade.

Because the Phryneans do not burn, loot, or conquer when they found new colonies, instead bribing locals with dyed silks and sweet raisin wines, the world calls them "peaceful." Only their subjects know the truth. That it's a hand for every grain harvest that doesn't tilt the scales. A foot for every theft. Crucifixion for striking a master. And for deserters, rebels, and apostates, burning alive——sacrifices to Êsht Ylar.

They've already made an example of one of Ch1's children. It wasn't hearing the little screams that broke her, but learning she'd caused them. Learned in the looks on the others' faces, pitying but furious. [i]She[/i] let the crops drown, rather than dropping to her hands and knees and breaking her teeth, shearing her fingernails on the brittle earth until it troughed. [i]She[/i] failed in her vigilance against grasshoppers, rodents, weevils.

There is no hope for Ch1. Not even in the sign of the saltbox, appearing on flags all across Sisbia. The declaration that some would rather sow their own earth with poison than let one more foreigner loot it; the symbol of the resistance.

If Ch2's rebellion is going to succeed unlike all others which came before it, he needs people exactly like Ch1 under his salted banner; the ones who've suffered most, and would prefer death over one more day's submissiveness. But can he glue together again that which has been broken into a million-billion pieces? Can he instill hope in the hopeless?[/hider]

I'll bump this thread with any more plots which get added. And like I said earlier, I'm looking forward to hearing your own ideas as well.

[center][img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/617914243760783381/1189186516778496030/image.png?ex=659d3f3f&is=658aca3f&hm=a943fc67994791808952705ffba6484310101063894d8e74de5240a4eacd7dd8&[/img][/center]
And, well, that's it. I hope to hear from you soon!—with interest, definitely, but just to test the waters or ask questions is also cool. If we're up to each other's standards, and go into each other's ideas with open minds, I think we could write something not just fun, but compelling, intellectual, and beautiful. =) [i]Valē![/i]

[center][img]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/617914243760783381/1189191342350405753/image.png?ex=659d43be&is=658acebe&hm=647441765b724d18e0277740de9739efdd6ad3cc434f016c3cee61a795444e8a&[/img][/center]