Some had called it Armageddon, others called it Rapture. Most, however, simply referred to that day as Equinox.
The world was less chaotic than one might have imagined. Sure, there were some uprisings here and there, but society for the most part sat down and did what their governments told them to do. But even without the threat of mass anarchy, ever since that fateful day, the world has never been the same. On that day, humanity entered sleep in the Winter and awoke in the Spring, face-to-face with a new ability that dwelt within them. For a few, the change was dramatic: some awoke to a spire of ice towering above their home and some to a vortex of steel eroding the land before them. For others, the change was less notable: some could suddenly see more colors of light and some could shift words about on a page. Governments of the world sprang to evaluate and adapt to the new risks—today, every person is tracked and classified according to their ability and its power to disrupt the now-fragile nature of society.
Three years have passed since the Equinox event. Society is stable and people have adjusted, but the sense of unrest that accompanied the shift hasn't faded. On one hand, the good in the world has been magnified by those with the newfound power to make a difference: those who care about the world and the people in it, who have taken the opportunity with a sense of purpose and hope. On the other hand, the evils of humanity have been emboldened to make the world their own. Terrorism is abundant and crime can't be stopped. In times like these, it feels like anything can happen, and the fate of the world has never been so uncertain.
To quell the social dishevel and fear of those with strong abilities, nations of the world banded together to develop the Societal Risk Classification System, a five-level power scheme that documents every living human's ability and threat level. Through advancements in wearable technology, any person can easily look up the ability and class of someone else through the Anomaly Database (ADB) at any time.
Alpha
No potential to harm others with their abilities. While an Alpha's power may be useful, it has no destructive potential and is not classified as a threat to the user's surroundings. Example: Basic Telepathy
Beta
Some potential to harm those around them given sufficient time or effort, or in the case of special circumstances. Betas are generally harmless but may have the capability to injure those in their immediate vicinity. Typically, either the impact or extent of injury is limited, or it comes at some resource cost to the Beta. Example: Production of Carbon Dioxide Gas
Gamma
Can cause injury and harm to those around them. Gammas are unlikely to ever become threats to national security, but they can often dish out a great deal of damage before being stopped. Most criminals who use their powers to break the law are Gammas. Example: Technokinesis
Delta
Can reliably cause a great deal of disruption and unrest in large swaths of society if given sufficient time and resources. Deltas have the potential to be extremely dangerous but are bound by some limitation that prevents them from being a consistent nation-level threat. Deltas are loosely monitored by the government and their general location is always known. The highest levels of Citizen Law Enforcement ('Heroes') are usually Deltas. Example: Limited Self-Replication
Epsilon
Can largely disrupt the fabric of society at will. Epsilons are closely tracked by the government at all times and given very little leniency. Epsilons are held to tight legal standards and are often executed for crimes that would otherwise warrant more lenient punishment. Example: Full-Scale Earthquake Generation
Some Gammas, Deltas, and Epsilons have faced challenges because of their perceived danger. Companies are hesitant to hire those who could damage the perception of their brands, and people are reluctant to befriend someone who may one day end everything they love. However, there are activists who have voiced discomfort with pushing those who have the most disruptive abilities toward ends where they might use them. Given the recent nature of the Equinox, no laws are in place to mitigate the impact of such decisions.
• Characters must have history with at least one other player character.
• Characters must be in their 20's or 30's unless an exception is requested.
• Situations can be dark or uncomfortable, but place extensively gruesome details in hiders if they are for the sake of description rather than narrative.
• Receive permission from other players before involving their characters in something they may object to.
• Characters must be within reasonable traveling distance to the city Vorpool, but they do not have to live there.
• The ADB entry of each character is accurate and can be easily looked up unless otherwise stated.
• Characters can be of any risk class, but there should be some level of representation among all classes.
• Abilities cannot be copied, lost, stolen, or nullified (the effect can, such as water putting out fire, but the ability itself cannot be 'turned off').
• Time travel is off-limits, but other time-related abilities will be considered on request.
• The climate around Vorpool is moderately warm. There is a river that runs through the center of the city and an ocean 200 miles south.
• Given that the year is 2041, reasonably advanced technologies are allowed.
• Classifications are not power tiers; many Epsilons can be stopped by a well-placed sniper.
• The governments of the world developed the classification system to assess the greatest national security risks and not to determine who would win in a fight.
Everything in the universe is connected by a string-like substance that makes up the foundation of all matter and energy. This yet-unnamed substance is smaller than particles and builds connections between related entities in the universe (e.g. between a star and its orbiting planet) and grows stronger as these entities further interact. All matter has a unique structure made of these strings on the lowest level. However, these connections are disproportionately influenced by human will; with the exception of some historical cases that quickly faded into myth, humans are incapable of meaningfully changing the world around them by exerting this influence. On the day of Equinox, each human's consciousness was synchronized with one of these structures, granting them the ability to cause some change in the world around them. Abilities can range from material generation to unique interactions with existing matter and energy—for the most part, any reasonable ability can be justified. Beyond abilities, real-life physics applies.
Image (Optional)
Name, Age
Appearance Description (Add additional detail if no image is included)
Alright, I got a chunk of the OOC done. It should be up and running by the afternoon; I'll link the thread as soon as it's finished. Have a fantastic Mother's Day in the meantime!
I have zero preference, personally. I usually use anime-style myself, but since it'll mostly be seen on the CS, whatever best helps you sell your character description is fine by me.
LegendBegins is a Moderator. They assist users and keep the forum running smoothly. They have power across all forums.
Tyler Night
Gadg8eer
WrongEndoftheRainbow
Majoraa
tadcfnaf
xVampire3go
Vampiretwilight
