Double

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn

Thanks, Ren. And yeah, the examples were indeed from Darkness Origins.

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn

Okay, seriously dude, now you're just intentionally making negative posts. Please stop. As a matter of fact, erase your posts so the negativity doesn't drive others away. Continue and I will call the mods.

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn

You two must have an absurd definition of the word "mature". I didn't curse, I didn't (intentionally) use any angry or venomous words in my response. I'd say that's extremely mature, but what do I know?

Oh, and those opinions I asked for? That was two weeks ago, my friend, back before I had made any real decisions about what kind of game I wanted to run. But by now I have made those decisions, as evidenced by the thorough set of rules I have laid out in my opening post.

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn

I think you know darn well what I meant about Shrek and Darth Vader. Just because Star Wars and Marvel are technically owned by Disney does not mean they should be included, because they're just too bloated with worlds and cultures of their own. Shrek at least is a single, self-contained world and he at least feels like a Disney character to some degree. Mind you, this doesn't mean I have plans for the character or world, I was just cherry-picking it as an example.

And yeah, either we have limited Keyblades, or none at all. Maybe I just have different taste, but as soon as the KH games started handing out Keyblades like candy to everyone that was when I started losing interest. The Keyblade is supposed to be the prophesied weapon that defeats the darkness and saves the universe. That doesn't sound like the kind of power I want everyone and their dog to possess. It's like Super Saiyans, you know the legendary warrior that's supposed to be born only once in a thousand years? The meaning of that was also completely ruined when that show started giving every bloody person the ability to transform into one. Kingdom Hearts effectively did the same thing with the Keyblades and I aim to rectify it in this RP's world.

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn

My deepest apologies for the massive delay, but here it is at last.

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn RP Thread

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn

No longer accepting characters

Plot

After dedicating years of his life to fighting Heartless and preserving the Realm of Light, Key-Master Sora passed away at a ripe old age. His legacy, however, lived on. The WDS (World Defense System) was greatly expanded and improved until it was capable of eliminating all Heartless activity on a single world. Over time, this system was spread to other worlds, and eventually Heartless became a thing of the past. It seemed the only place Heartless could now thrive was in the depths of space, in the areas outside of the opened Star Paths. Their increased presence in these locations caused them to develop strong concentration of dark energies, too dangerous to fly through, and so Gummi Ship travel became restricted to only following the paths that Sora had opened during his second journey (Kingdom Hearts 2). Like Sora, Riku also dedicated his life to the cause of light, and after Sora's death he founded a Brotherhood of Knights that would come to be known as the Judges. The Judges tasked themselves with maintaining the peace and eliminating any force that would threaten the return of the Heartless.

It's now been a thousand years since those times. Peace has reigned throughout that time, and most of the worlds are prospering. One of those worlds is Lunaris, a world named for it's intriguing resemblance to a moon. Lunaris is a thriving space port, finding itself in the center of a profitable trading route between various worlds. It's home to many merchants (some that travel, others that don't) and has become a popular place for would-be adventurers and explorers to get their start. One unlikely group of strangers, each in Lunaris for one reason or another, face an impending challenge... whether they know it or not. What had begun as a simple purpose for being in Lunaris will take a turn... for the worse.

The Story So Far

Prologue: Enemies of the Light

On an average morning in Lunaris, two of the famed Judges, Raiden and Seraph arrive to perform an inspection of the WDS in place for the spaceport. Five youths named Jared, Kasus, Elim, Serene, and Siho awaken or arrive, preparing to go about their usual morning business. Suddenly, an explosion shakes the port, followed by the appearance of Heartless, not seen on worlds for a thousand years. The Judges race to the tower housing the WDS control center, aiming to repair the system before Lunaris can be overrun. In the town itself, the five youths brandish various weapons and do their best to fight off the creatures and help others to safety. But luck was not on their side, and a giant armored Heartless appeared within the merchant district, threatening to level the shops if not dealt with. The five attacked it immediately, and thus the story of how they first met was begun. One of them, Jared, broke his weapon against the armored creature and was nearly knocked out completely with a blow of retaliation from the creature. The others continued fighting, soon discovering that the emblem on the creature's chest was it's weak point. Now with an actual place to focus their attacks, the group begin to deal real damage to the Heartless boss. Meanwhile, Jared is able to regain his focus thanks to a gunshot against the Heartless, courtesy of Siho who had now decided to join the fray. Spotting a child about to be attacked by a smaller Heartless, Jared's courage swelled as he charge the black creature, summoning a mysterious weapon to his hands as if by a miracle. The weapon cut through the Heartless easily, and with a renewed fighting spirit Jared gave it a good throw, the blade of the weapon lodging into the big one's chest. Granted an opening, Kasus, Siho, and Elim let loose on the creature, and finally the creature seemed defeated. Serene in the meantime became distracted by the sudden disappearance of her lover, Moon-in-Sun, but she wouldn't have enough time to dwell on that. The defeated Heartless suddenly reformed itself into a similar, but different form that was much stronger than the previous one. Thankfully, Raiden and Seraph appeared to battle the creature themselves. As they struck, Jared's caretaker Dion also appeared and urged the five to run, saying they would be in grave danger if they remained.

And so, with little choice, the group followed him. He took them to an old hanger, telling them of an old Gummi Ship he possessed called the Enterprise. He'd once captained the ship once upon a time, but he was now passing it on to them, to Jared in particular, wishing them to take it and use it to escape. But why? The answer was grim, for he told them that the Judges were convinced that they were the ones who attacked the WDS and sabotaged it. And that after dealing with the Heartless, they would be next on their to-do list. He also seemed well-aware of what the Keyblade and Heartless were, but there was no time for questioning why. He then left the group in order to buy them time, and so they blasted off from Lunaris, now branded as outlaws and traitors. As Enemies of the Light.

---

Rules

1. Follow all the site's standard rules regarding flaming and such.


2. Keep the tone of the RP in the PG-13 range.


3. I'm only allowing up to 2 Keyblade Wielders.


4. If you are one of said Wielders, bear in mind that your Keyblade is not a be-all-end-all fix to all your problems, and it certainly doesn't make you invincible or more important than the other characters.


5. One more rule for Keyblade Wielders. You do not get to start out with a Keyblade. It will come to you in time, but only after it is earned. Until then, you would be wise to have an alternative means to fight or defend yourself.


6. Magic, in this time period, is considered a somewhat rare art. That basically means you cannot start with an arsenal of spells, but only one spell that you likely haven't even mastered yet.


7. The above rule is slightly different if you plan to play a pure mage. In such a case, you are entitled to no more than three starting spells, and they have to be basic (ie no bending time and space) and must not include the Cure spell. Healing magic right out of the starting gate would be a bit too easy in my opinion.


8. While Kingdom Hearts is known for combining Final Fantasy and Disney, I will be incorporating characters and locales from other sources, meaning you can as well.


9. Regarding the above rule, please do not go overboard with it. If you wish to include a character or world from another franchise it has to at least make sense. For instance, Shrek is a character who would likely fit very well in the KH-verse, as would other Square-Enix alumni from games like Chrono Trigger. Ezio Auditore and Darth Vader, on the other hand, would not fit. Does that make any sense?


10. The Judges are strictly NPC's. This means you cannot play as one, nor can your character start with any personal connections to them. You can, however, control some of their actions in your posts for the sake of moving the plot and/or avoiding one liner posts.


11. Regarding Nobodies, they are mostly no longer relevant in this time period. If you really want to encounter them at a later time then it can be worked out, but only standard Nobodies. Organization XIII is dead and gone, and no amount of popularity is going to convince me to resurrect them like the main games have done.


12. These rules, as written, are subject to be altered, deleted, or have more added to them as I see fit.


13. Let's try to write an epic tale and have a little fun while we're at it, shall we?

---

Abilities

Abilities will fall into one of two categories: Minor and Major. An ability's overall power and ease of use determines the category it falls under. Here's some quick examples.

1. Minor Abilities: These abilities are ones that are generally common among many characters and are usually learned via level up in the games. Certain attacks like Strike Raid and Goofy Tornado are considered Minor Abilities. Certain Support abilities, such as MP Haste, are also considered Minor. In our game, these will generally be learned after fighting minor boss battles that will typically come in the middle of a World's storyline.


2. Major Abilities: These are more powerful Abilities that cannot be learned via level up, and instead are typically learned at certain plot points or as rewards for side quests. New spells or upgrading old ones are considered Major Abilities, as are Limit Breaks and, for the purposes of the RP, Shotlocks. For the RP, Major Abilities are only learned after defeating the World Boss, the boss battle that represents the climax and ending of a World's storyline.


3. Summons will be handled slightly differently. Rather than learning them as any other ability, they will be obtained in one of two ways: Charms (a la Kingdom Hearts 2) which, like in the game they originated in, are items to be carried around and (by that logic) usable by anyone who's carrying them; the other method of gaining summons is related to the overarching storyline. The difference between these methods is simple: Charms apply to Disney Character summons (eg Dumbo, Tinker Bell, etc), the other method will apply to Final Fantasy summons (eg Ifrit, Shiva, etc).

---

Character Skeleton

Name:

Age:

Gender:

Appearance:

Personality:

History:

Weapon:

Skills:
Shotlock: (Leave this blank for now, abilities like these are to be learned over time.)
Magic:

Summon: (Leave this blank for now as well, like Shotlocks these will be acquired over time.)

---

Characters

GM Character

Name: Jared Thatch

Age: 17

Gender: M

Appearance:


Personality: Thatch is a curious sort, quick to investigate anything that piques his interest. This can often lead to trouble, if his curiosity takes him to a place he is not allowed to be in. Despite his lack of upbringing and penchant for getting into things he's not meant to, Jared's still a good kid. If he happens upon a hungry child or stray cat, he'll not hesitate to share what little food he has. If he encounters bullying or even a mugging, he'll stand up to the antagonists without a second thought. Through all this, Jared has a dream of his own. Having spent his whole life around the ships of Lunaris, he hopes to one day have one to call his own, so he too can take to the stars and partake in whatever the universe has to offer.

History: Despite Lunaris' bustling population, there are surprisingly few people who actually live there. Thatch is one of these few, having grown up in and around the various space ports and sea ports, watching ships come and go and listening in on stories shared between captains and crew members. But Thatch himself was just an urchin as far anyone was concerned, a kid with no family scavenging shipwrecks for anything of value or that might still be useful and selling them for peanuts just to avoid starving. But then Thatch met the one man who actually saw something in him. He was an older man, a retired captain named Dion, who lived alone in an old military hanger no longer in use. He essentially took the boy in, giving him a place he could actually call home, and meals that consisted of more than just single pieces of fruit or stale bread. It didn't stop Jared from his scavenging - or "prospecting" as he preferred to call it - and in fact the old man knew of more shipwrecks and would loan his boat to Thatch to go out and search them. Soon he was also teaching the boy some self-defense maneuvers from his time as a captain. Thus we now have the Jared Thatch of today, a young man making a meager wage in salvaging, and with a basic training to defend himself with.

Weapon: Keyblade
Key Chain: Kingdom's Flame


Skills: Swimming (both on the surface, and underwater) and Climbing
Abilities: Sonic Blade, Combo Boost
Shotlock:
Magic: Thunder

Summon:

Elim - Renose
Serene Blaze - Sezir
Simo Hayha - Card Captor

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn

Hmm... looks like the general consensus is to limit Keyblades and ignore the Nobodies then... may go with that option. For the record, I am not automatically reserving a Keyblade for myself. That would be kind of dickish... plus I have my own ideas anyway so... *shrug*

I'll reiterate this point when I get an actual thread up, but the Judges will all be NPC's so it goes without saying that they will be off limits for player characters. However, should the need arise for someone to take control of a Judge for plot purposes (which I will allow/encourage) the general rule of thumb is that the Judges will have names and abilities inspired by Final Fantasy summons. So expect names like ifrit and Ramuh to crop up as they come along.

Kingdom Hearts: Darkness Reborn

After dedicating years of his life to fighting Heartless and preserving the Realm of Light, Key-Master Sora passed away at a ripe old age. His legacy, however, lived on. The WDS (World Defense System) was greatly expanded and improved until it was capable of eliminating all Heartless activity on a single world. Over time, this system was spread to other worlds, and eventually Heartless became a thing of the past. It seemed the only place Heartless could now thrive was in the depths of space, in the areas outside of the opened Star Paths. Their increased presence in these locations caused them to develop strong concentration of dark energies, too dangerous to fly through, and so Gummi Ship travel became restricted to only following the paths that Sora had opened during his second journey (Kingdom Hearts 2). Like Sora, Riku also dedicated his life to the cause of light, and after Sora's death he founded a Brotherhood of Knights that would come to be known as the Judges. The Judges tasked themselves with maintaining the peace and eliminating any force that would threaten the return of the Heartless.

It's now been a thousand years since those times. Peace has reigned throughout that time, and most of the worlds are prospering. One of those worlds is Lunaris, a world named for it's intriguing resemblance to a moon. Lunaris is a thriving space port, finding itself in the center of a profitable trading route between various worlds. It's home to many merchants (some that travel, others that don't) and has become a popular place for would-be adventurers and explorers to get their start. One unlikely group of strangers, each in Lunaris for one reason or another, face an impending challenge whether they know it or not. What had begun as a simple purpose for being in Lunaris will take a turn... for the worse.



So that's the plot hook. It's a bit generic but I can promise it gets interesting once it starts. I'd tell you how but... spoilers. Anyway there's a couple of things I still need input with. Here they are:

1. Keyblades. This one is sort of the elephant in the room. At least one will be incorporated in ways I will choose not to reveal for spoilery reasons. But what I'm asking is should the party be allowed to have them. The issue I'm thinking of is that if everyone has one, then that diminishes their overall value, but if only one or two is allowed to have one then it suddenly becomes unfair to everyone else. Should Keyblades simply be banned in terms of player characters?

2. Nobodies. You'll notice that the plot hook kind of goes out of its way to avoid mentioning them. This is because I simply have no idea what to do with them at present. I can imagine they would just kind of fade away since Sora defeating the Organization kind of made them become irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Any thoughts or whatever concerning this? *shrugs*

Kamen Rider: All Riders vs Foundation X

I'd really love to do an Imagin-based Rider but... geez Den-O gets overused enough as it is... hmm.

Could just go crazy old school and be an Ichigo-style Cyborg Rider...

Danger! Excitement! Adventure

I'm just going to say this now. I have zero interest in seeing who can be the bigger douche, Wernher. So don't expect me flanderize and make a complete ass of Dawn just for that. Besides, Dawn is meant to be charming and likable in his antics, not an outright insufferable asshole. So they're not the same thing at all really.