Hellis

HALT! [Light Hearted, High Fantasy, Tongue in Cheek]

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@Halvtand@DracoLunaris@Taaj@DepressedSoviet@The Mad Hatter@Alternax@Infamous Empath

HALT! The not so glorius life of the City Guard.

“HALT! Life of the City Guard.”

Rules:
Post your CS in the OOC and wait for approval.
Act nice
The common rules apply.

The City of Kings Knell is one of the greatest cities in the world. Over a million people call it their home. While it is predominantly a human city, it has entire neighborhoods full of dwarves, goblins and orcs and other non-human races. But big cities mean big crimes. And different groups of diverse individuals with cultural differences that sometimes spill over. Indeed, Kings Knell is a place of many dangers.

Enter the City Guard. The people keeping peace in the city. Or attempt to at any rate. Life is hard for the Guard. They aren't expected to make it to pension age, they are understaffed, unequipped and poorly payed. They walk the streets of the most dangerous city in the world with only their lantern and whatever they have managed to get for a weapon.

Worst of all, is the Guard House of 22nd Cleaver Street. Right on the outskirts of the Lost Slums. There are no guardhouses in the slums anymore. They all burned down. 22nd stands because technically, it is not in the slums and thus tolerated. It is here men and women of ill repute end up when signing with the guard without the proper bribes or threats being levied towards their superior. The guard detail of 22nd happens to be us, the players. A motley bunch of rejects and outcasts. Petty criminals, despised or outcast races, poor lads and lasses without future prospects and god knows what other rabble.

The city of Kings Knell rests upon a hill that may or may not be burial ground for ancient kings. Its royal palace may or may not be a bastion which foundation consists of the bones of vanquished enemies. Welcome to the City where Kings come to die.

Indeed, Kings Knell is as old as civilization itself, having been raised and built a new numerous time and somehow survived both Elven Empires, Dwarfish confederations and Orch Hordes. It has had Human kings, Undead Lords and the occasional Demonic Sovereign. They have all had something in common, they were all assassinated fairly soon after ascending the throne. Either by holy water, poisoned ale or a stake through the heart, it seems regents don’t last long in the city.

Currently ruled by the Steward of King John Baxter The First, the first human king in nearly 300 years. The aforementioned inhuman rulers have pretty much replaced one another and conquered the area from one another. All the rulers failing to understand the delicate balance of huge city full of skilled cutthroats and ruthless tradesmen.

It didn’t matter that you were a demon when someone can smuggle in holy water in massive quantities. Some, like the Dwarfish Miner King realized that he had taken over a city that greedily assimilated its conquerors and booked it. The orcs and goblins were persistent, but they soon found themselves at each other’s throats as the human nobles and merchant princes waited in exile until they could move back.
Guards Handbook:

Chapter 1: Brief Layout of Kings Knell

A massive city, built upon the bones of its invaders, conquerors and resulting minority groups, Kings Knell provides every guard with its number of challenges. From the winding streets of the High Quarters to the narrow, even more winding streets of the Lost Slums. With haunted necropolis underground passages to pristine marble gated communities. Kings Knell is like no other city on the planet. Mainly because most other cities have the common decency to make sense and not be so damn scary.

The residential areas are strewn about, with the posher areas like High Quarters all centered around Kings Hill where the palace can be found. A massive river runs trough the city, cutting in half with a river delta taking up a part of the southern city. Some famous areas of the city include ”The Guilds Street” where all the official guilds have their extravagant Guild houses. The Whiskey Lane, called such because it is filled with competing taverns. The Lost Slums refer to a massive, squalor filled set of places along the city walls. Here, all manners of ill gotten deeds happen and the rule of the law reaches the least. It harbors such lovely street names as ”Shank Alley” and ”Pummel Road”

Geography

The River Knell and the Broken Coast

Along the southern border of the city, lies part of the Broken Coast. Called so by the fact that it not only consist of jagged rocks that killed more ships then any sea battles combines, but also because it has in fact, broken entire armadas. To navigate the coast, you need a sailors eye, a gamblers luck and more ice in your stomachache then the north pole could afford to spare. In a effort to better the sea trade, the Mageguild did their best to tear down the worst of the jagged rocks to allow easier passage into the Bay river delta. They managed somewhat, although some say they forgot about the rock they couldn't see, that is, whatever was left underneath the water. So there is at least one or two broken ship a year.

The River Knell cuts trough the land like a slow moving snake of water. Its delta provides the city with fishing and more mosquitos then anyone has any right to suffer from. The river itself continues all the way to the Twinkling Mountains, where it provides a means to transport ore, dwarven craft and Lumber from the logger camps. The river is also a excellent way to dispose bodies. The net outside of the River Guards office is not for fish after all.

Kings Hill

The center of the City is Kings Hill. A tall, steep hill that aspires to be a mountain but failed to get there, Kings Hill houses both the Royal Chapter of the Enlightenment (Formerly know as the Asmogian Chapel of Darkness, during the Asmogian Demonlords two day reign.) and the Great Palace. The Great Palace is currently harboring the 10 year old 'king' John and his Steward, caretaker and all around city ruling power player; Isabell ”I stabbed my mother in the eye” Bones.

The Not So Great (Yellow) Plains

The Not So Great Planes are the eastern parts of the citystates borders. Stretching for a few miles east of the Walls, it holds little to no actual ”greatness”. It doesn't stretch very far before it becomes broken up by forests and small villages, but yet the settlers decided the planes was a important nad distinct part of the cities future. It's greatest geographical importance is that it has pretty much all been turned into wheat for the city.

The Hilly Bits / The Highlands

The Hilly Bits consit of the western part of the city's outer borders. The Highlands as it is called by its original citizens (Hobgoblins and Halflings), has been slowly but surely swallowed up by the growing city state. A rare and historical alliance 200 years prior saw Hobgoblins nad Halflings unite to try and drive back the encroaching city. The king at that time answered by burning the hills and poison the water supplies. The ”Hobbos” and ”Halfies” have been loyal citizens ever since.

Twinkling Mountains

Not an actual part of the City State, the Twinkling Mountains none the less hold a very important part of its survival. They provide pretty much EVERYTHING that keeps the city from crumbling apart. Ore, lumber and tools are transported daily down the river to the city, keeping its machine like presence going. It should be noted that its mainly dwarves in the mountains and they are very peculiar about payment. The last aggregated debt led to the many rival clans uniting into a Confederacy and taking the city. As is the case with things however, most dwarves realized the city was a terrible place to be and withdrew after looting the palace. Those that did not leave now have a legacy within the walls of being stingy and drunk as few.

Chapter 2

The people and power of Kings Knell

The City Guard:

The most important note for a Guard to read, is the fact that it wasn't a Monarch that formed the guard. It was one of the stewards who made the city guard a thing. This mainly because Kings Guard, Palace Guard and Royal Army were all liable to loot, abuse their station as royally appointed servants and otherwise be a general menace rather than actually enforcing law and order. Enter Charles the Trembler, steward to High Lord Bart Swordbane. Charles formed the city guard and gave them a set of rules that THEY were meant to follow on pain of death. They had restrictions the royal guards had not, but with privileges the did not have. Such as arresting Nobles. He split the Guard into sections and built guardhouses across the rapidly growing city. A specific guard was established to overlook the River and one to replace the garrisoned troops at the gate.

These were meant to be Men and women from within the city who to be loyal towards the city itself. Regardless of the ruler, the men and women of the Guard patrol the street and keep the order. This one constant remained every time the leaders changed, as the stewards insisted they were kept as unchanged as possible. As the city grew, and the makeup of the city populace changed nad turned into cornocopia of races, so had the Guard been forced to adapt. The Pardon Rule was brought in after a pair of Bugbears helped a Commander of the Guard deal with a Goblin Baby Smuggling ring. By eating said Goblins.

These days, Guards men are of much lower stock. The Pardon Rule has opened the floodgates for all sorts of scoundrels and there is a saying about the Guard.

"Crooked? They are so bent a horse shoe would blush."

Kings Guard/Royal Palace Garrison.

Loyal to the ruler, they currently serve King John albeit everyone knows their loyalty lies with Isabell. In face, a astute observer would not that the leader of the Garrison looks dreadfully close to "Battle Axe" Bowen, notorious brigand and pirate. Or that the Head of Royal Protection looks remarkbly like Humbert "Dragon Snarl" Jostersen, a man wanted for wiping a small city off the map ten years prior. But they aren't bent and crooked. That would require someone to tell them to their face that what they are doing is wrong.

Magicians, what are they good for?

Absolutely everything as it turns out. Magic is a prevalent reason to why the city isn't totally in the proverbial drain of history. The mages guild keeps magic and its practitioners under a strict and very ruthless rule. Magicians have to be licensed to practice within the walls and a licence takes years and costs massive amounts of money to obtain. This ensures the magicians are either people of wealth or practically indentured servants to the guild. One way to escape such a service, is becoming a guard.

Mages are looked upon with suspicion in the best of times. A guard Mage is looked upon much how you look upon a prepped and ready to blow grenade. That happened to land in a babys crib. In a newly built orphanage.

Crime and You; Aka, we are not paid well enough.

The guards first and foremost purpose is to protect the citizens and solve crimes. This is not easy as criminals are generally better equipped and more trained then the regular guard. Where the Guard has been in steady decline the criminals have organized in gangs and syndicates. They wage war on another and like in all these things, innocents get hurt. And so does guards. Especially in the slums you have to look over your shoulder and try not to peer to deep into the shadows. Lest you bare witness to something you cannot stop.

And that isn’t even dwelling into the cultist cabals, elven moonshine and drug smugglers, dwarfish construction rackets and the orcs highly illegal blood sport events. There is a reason the average life expectancy for a “diligent and good natured” guard is 5 years at the maximum.

Recruiting; Welcome to the Guard!

The Guard accepts all men and women of any race or creed: Orcs, dwarves, humans from across the sea and elves of all kinds. There is precedence for allowing snakemen, thieflings and other extremely exotic and scary creatures into the guard. In fact, sometimes it helps to have a spikey forehead or cloven hooves when traveling through dark streets. One may not that there are such storied careers as Balkut Toe crusher, a eight feet minotaur and Louthian Webrunner a Drow Exile who spent the later part of his career as a drider.

Races: (A small exerpt, you can make variants or chose a entirely different race. Just give it a similar kind of blurb so I know what exactly I am dealing with.)

Dwarves: The Dwarves came to the city mainly as part of the throng that Miner King and his confederacy sent down from the mountains. The current dwarves are generally offspring to those that stayed in the city after the invasion died down. The dwarves have a reputation of being short of sight, short of temper and well, just short. Although you do not say it to their face, but far out of throwing axe range.

Thieflings; The spawn of various small time demons nad humans. They are few and far between, but hold a surprisingly good reputation, Mainly because a thiefling misbehaving is turned into a bonfire oh so quickly. Thiefling is a bit of a catch all term for half demons, and can look all but human, to have cloven feet and mouth full of needle like teeth.

Elves: The Elves are tricky creatures. In that they are very clever and look at authority as a neat concept that only applies to other people. Dark elves make it a sport to smuggle as much of their mushrooms and “shroom juice” into the city as possible without notice. The wood elves wouldn’t touch a cobbled street if you so payed them. And the High Elves infiltrate high society and make decadent nobles look like little blushing school girls. Dark Elves live mainly in the vast catacombs underneath the city, with dark skin and pale, often dyed hair. Woodelves just do not live in the city at all, and High elves tend to live posh. Of the latter, many tend to have a human patron who is not quite sure what he is paying them for.

Orcs: The hordes came, raised, murdered, plundered and caused enormous amount of property destruction. They also failed to establish any sense of leadership after they actually conquered the and quickly devolved into squabbling tribes that were reduced further and further until they were simply another set of gangs. Orcs have an incredibly hard go of it in town, climbing up the social ladder when your base instinct is to beat people to death with their own arms is a difficult thing.

Goblins: Much like the Orcs, they were reduced from invaders to second class citizens. However, goblins are tinkerers and artistic. IF eccentric with their art and creations. Goblins have managed to drag themselves out of the muck as a result, and like to rub it the face of Orcs whenever they can.

Hobgoblins: Hobs, Hobbos, Hobbers. Destested child has many names. The Hobgoblins are not, as their name would otherwise suggest, relatives to goblins. They have big ears and a slight hunch just like 'gobbos' but they are far bigger in size and covered with fur. About the size of a average human, they are violent and clever buggers. They live in the Highlands and are locked in a ancient feud with the halflings

Halflings: Halfies are the other native race for the Highlands. Shorter then a dwarf and not even half as stocky, they rely on breeding and eating like rabbits to survive. The result of the Hobbo-Halfie peace meant a explosion in Halfling numbers.

Undead: They come in all shapes and sizes it seems. Undead is just a laymans term for varius "Should-be-dead" or "Risen for some goddamn reason" people. More or less all living in the Necropolis district, they are mostly zombies and various variations of vampires and similar.

Character Sheet
Name:
Race: (you don't have to pick any of the examples. I have not defined the world much outisde the citys closest vicinity for a reason! Just make sure you give me a little info about the race you pick if its something of your own making.)
Appearance:
Age:
Former Proffesion: (What were you before becoming a guard)
Skill:
Personality:
History:

Mass Effect: Borealis

Finals? Is that something younings do?

HALT! [Light Hearted, High Fantasy, Tongue in Cheek]

@Taaj

Oh snap! Didn't know you were still around!

HALT! [Light Hearted, High Fantasy, Tongue in Cheek]

They say the City Guard accepts anyone who sign the paper. But I wasn't even given a paper. They just looked at me and went "You'll have to do lad".
-Sgt Josephine Heartbone, former seamstress.

Hello! Hellis here. I tried this somewhere around a year ago, sadly it never really took off. I am now trying again, as it is a setting i burn for and really feel has the potential for longivety. Its a very light hearted take, and I plan on having fun with the common fantasy tropes and hope you will join me in playing as dysfunctional guards in a massive fantasy city.

The premise is simple. The City of Kings Knell is one of the greatest cities in the world. The kind of massive sprawling city you see in movies and books with its spires, alleys and exotic shops. Home for over a million denizens, not all of them human and a quite few less then savory. While it is predominetly a human city, it has entire neigbourhoods full of dwarves, goblins, orcs and other non-human races. Many of said races have at one point invaded the city and briefly ruled as its ruling class. Leading to a constant squabble about who should be the leaders of the city.

You play as part of the the City Guard. The people keeping peace in the city. There is a caveat. You are all a bunch of runaways, lowlives and others who joined the Guard because it can serve as a pardon. And because the guard accepts people of ANY race. Even the scarier ones. This rp will be rather light in tone, with focus on character banter and actions. some light story archs will provide direction, but in general, it won't follow a strict path.

Create-A-Hero: A Superhero RPG Season 2- New Horizons (Closed)

The city of New York. Manhattan Island.

The day of the bombs. To humankind, the building had been just another downtown financial building. Another gate to the rich on wall street. Inside it held one of the gates to Alfheim. Hidden by the strongest of glamours, the entire building was just a shell for a great tree that twisted 30 stories tall. A place of rare power and a rare connection between two very different worlds. Agent Treaties had kept it hidden. The Agency had made sure that it remained such. Earth and Alfheim were two worlds that had co-existed for thousands of years. Mainly because humanity was more a passing curiosity to many of the Elves. A race that meddled more with each other then any other realm.

Untill today.

The explosion rippled outwards at first. A bellow inferno blossoming from one small sun of blistering heat to a red giant of death. The flames tore out the doors, flinging melting glass on bystanders.But the real damage was inside. The entire building, which was made out of glass and wood on the inside as fey abhorred iron. lit aflame. The white hot, napalm like fire travelled up the the gates structure at the speed of a raging wildfire. And within the hidden crevices in the tree, faeries screamed in death throes. Trolls melted, their skin sloughing of their faces and boiled. Human guests were quick to die, having no resistences or protection. Far worse were it for the hardier species, whos agony would taint the ground for years to come.

Sitting in the midst of the fire was one specific creature that refused to die untill its duty was done. The Gatekeeper, a nightmare from the darkest North. She was grasping a burning human. The bomb carrier. Prolonging his death as he himself died. The creature fed on pain and fear, and a burning house like this meant it could prolong both their lives for a good twenty minutes. “You will tell me everything” IT hissed, his golden horns nad ebony skinn crackling in the heat, falling off in ashen flakes. “You will tell me all you know. And then, My king will destroy you all.”

-----------

He sat upon his throne of gold, glass and wood. His face was a stormcloud as he heard the news. A gate had been struck, destroyed and with the old peace was broken. The long golden and white hair fell in cascades over a face to beutyfull to belong to any human. Lips turned to a grim smile. They did not know he was a Warrior King. He stepped up slowly from his throne, and the look on his face was one of weary contempt.

“Call forth my advisors. Let my Champions know.” Dismssied the ones waiting at his side with a wave of his arm. As he walkes, his robe slid off him, white skin like porcelein soon starting to light up with runes. Runes far more complex then anything his lover, Johan wore. Runes carved millimeter by millimeter over hundreds of years. His eyes turned from a dim gold to brilliant halos against black fields of hatred. He walked out to the balcony of his castle. They already stood there, staring up at him. Last of the Surviving Joten, giants among even the biggest of creatures. Next to them hovered Bloodmares, their red plumage blackened withe sot of burned corpses. Cohorts after cohorts of Mörkalfar, Ljusalfar and his own Isalfar stood staring grimly up at him.

“Today marks a dark day in our history.” He spoke. “The Day Midgard made a grave mistake. We left them alone to their steel, to their pollution, to their folly. We even took one of them into our ranks. I loved that man. And I trusted him to police our kind in thieir world. Now I find my gates assaulted by petty mortals?!” He shouted the last with disdain dripping from ever world.

“We lost our brothers and sisters. But they do not KNOW us.” He lifted the sword Ishjärta, its cold blue blade glimmering in the light. “BUT THEY WILL FEAR US.” There was shouts. Raised weapons of all kinds, spears, swords and more modern ones. “We will carve from their world a prize they never will forget. We will bring war to them like they brought fire to our trees. We will take the hatchet to their young, like they cut down your forests. We shall see their leaders cowed, their heroes broken. We shall bring the might of the Fey once more to the forefront of history. NEVER AGAIN WILL WE LET THEM FORGET WHO WE ARE. WHAT WE CAN DO.” And while the madness of war began to boil in their blood. Dark, hooded figures tittered and giggled in the shadows. Their leering red eyes watching.

“So it begins. The fall of the Elven courts.” One said.

“Soon, Madness shall reign.” said another.

-------

As soon as he left the Balcony, the King called upon one of the few remaining advisors in the palace.

“Ready my envoys. I will speak to the one they call… Ambassador”

----

Create-A-Hero: A Superhero RPG Season 2- New Horizons (Closed)

Rest of the world:

Do not piss of the supernatural.

Regard. The Supernatural.

①⑨⑥⑧

I am here.

Mass Effect: Borealis

Drono listened to them, and a part of him stirred. They all had their ways of showing it, but there was a kind of camaraderie here. Yes,. they didn’t jump in like idiots on the chance to possibly save him from certain death. But he didn’t want them to, nor did he expect them to. They were planning and preparing. They were working like a team in order to maybe, somehow, save his ass. It would have brought him to tears, but he found himself fresh out of tears. His head was clearer then it had been in years. Part of it was the better, cleaner drugs. Part of it was the calmness of his fellows.

“Alright. I know a person who is wants to fuck with Yestin as bad as I do. So I will throw her a call, she knows us both from old, and if anyone can help throw him off my tail to give us all breathing room. It is her.” He said as he had taken in what they all had to say. Haze in particular was already drafting plans. He was a smidge jealous at how organized the turian was. To him, the general gist of a plan was "Improvise better."

“I agree with your plan Haze, we won’t go in half assed. Subterfuge is our best bet. But we need contingency plans if things get ugly.” He said as he pondered. “Haze. I am going to need you to bring something with you during your scouting. There is a place I want you to stake out, and if possible. Drop of a little explosive package. It is our contingency plan.” He said as he began clicking about on his omnitool, drawing up map of the station. “If we need to get out of dodge fast, this tunnel here leads straight to the port, It would be very simple to make inaccessible behind us if we are retreating.”

He turned to the others again. “Any eyes we can get on the opposition before this stuff goes down, the better. Eclipse are well prepared, but they aren’t expecting anything like us. I wager Yestin has no idea of our set up, our crew or our capabilities. And he is stingy and petty, so he will assume you are all a bunch of losers. If we get the bead on them, we can possible sabotage their heavy stuff, should they have any.”

His eyes fastened of Firu, “That… That is actually a good idea. Once the others have lured them away, I imagine it would be good if someone with actual medical knowledge talked to them. And any help with fixing the cybernetic parts I imagine is good.” He nodded. A little bit of hope returning to him for each thing he took into consideration.

“We need ot locate a good ambush spot, and rig it. The harder and faster we hit them, the better. Dex, you are our cloak and dagger expert here babe. I will leave it to you to do the whole “Set up a digital mumbo jumbo decoy.” He chewed his lip. “Vellios. If we can get them somewhere narrow like a alleyway, your cane mines will come in handy. And if you are indeed the Decoy, try and leave atleast one of them Alive. We need them to know we are going to be to costly a target for them to go after, but that we don’t want to escelate. The are mercenaries and profit is their only concern.”

“As for Yestin himself. We will deal with him in time. Yestins a planner. And whenever shit goes south, he tends to retreat and retrace his steps. That gives up a lot of time do our own digging. When the time comes, we hit him. But I am not going to let my own quest for vengeance get in the way of our business. We’ll keep a eye out, time will provide. Well if old Jalopy doesn't explode due to vented methane or something first.”
He leaned back, Taking a deep breath. “Right. We got work to do. Best get on it people.”

Pandora's Inheritance: Coven

yOU GOT MY interest :D