@Liotrent I have a question, are we playing as the actual empires or their colonies on the map above? I am a little confused by the wording.
You can play as either the empires themselves who ae in the process of establishing colonies or as a colony currently in the process of becoming independent.
To add on to Clock's question, can we run nations that are composed of native groups to these isles - either tribal societies or old kingdoms? I like the idea of playing with a country with high levels of access to magic (but low technology) and I thought this could be a good place for it
Yes you can, that is also why I made it a point to mention that there are natives to these lands. You can play as them.
I like to give a high degree of freedom in the creation of your nation or organizations. I give you a blank canvas in which to paint a picture of this world. Sorry if my wording is a bit confusing, I may have missed a few things with my proofreading and I don’t have a co-gm to help me with this.
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Well, I was specifically thinking they'd be independent and operating for multiple different nations, just whoever pays and is willing to agree to their terms of independence and post holdings.
So you’re playing more as an independent organization. Fair enough. Kind of like the Landsknecht and Condottiere. Okay, I can see that working.
@Liotrent Before I get started on a full nation sheet, I wanted to run my idea by you since its a little unorthodox. Basically I wanna repurpose an idea from another NRP a good while back. Basically a group that's a mishmash of a mercenary company, knight-errant order, and monastic order. Leasing their soldiery out to nations I'm exchange for shares of money, and plots of land to build new postings.
I can see that happening. The question is, what nation will they be from and will that nation also have designs for this small stretch of land?
The world has been in constant turmoil over the scarce but renewable resource known as manarite. The manarite refinement process allowed for different forms of manarite to be used for different applications. Solid, Liquid, and Gaseous manarite allows for different applications. The world became dependent on this miraculous resource and all its benefits towards magic and technology. However, this would put different empires against each other for prestige, for honor, for supremacy, for freedom, for security, and whatever other reason people fought for.
Empires would rise and fall. Constant war would stunt the growth of technology for a time and only at times of peace would economies grow, cultures spread, and technology develop. If one were to compare our world to theirs, they'd have access to electricity and fuel and yet they would be less efficient in their consumption. Mechanical progress was slow, streamlining processes took decades, and such is the case when looking at this world's military. They did not have tanks, they did not have planes, but they had massive warships and airships; they have no magazine fed rifles, no body armor, but they have gatlings and manarite weapons. In the end technology for each country may have developed in similar ways but diverged in others.
Empires continue to fight for territory, for resources, and for colonies to feed their imperial ambitions.
Setting:
The roleplay setting is in a steampunk/dieselpunk setting with magic still being a major source of power for some nations. As mentioned, constant war has caused technology to vary and stall, while there are a lot of things that have progressed, there are many things that are somewhat stuck in the early to middle victorian era. Perhaps there are people here that still use muzzle loaders, perhaps there are people who have yet to develop electricity because of a manarite shortage - whatever the case, this gives people the chance to diversify their nations.
The map on top is a few islands within the world. Not a continent, rather think of it as like Japan, Philippines, or Malaysia. Obviously the map isn't the size of any of these places and I'd rather not get into size and rather keep it vague. The focus of this is not a super accurate representation of land mass and geography but rather the stories borne out of the nations eeking out their colonial ambitions here. There are natives of this land and perhaps they may have been left to their own devices and become independent from the colonists.
Resources:
Manarite itself is a miracle resource that can intensify magic but it also has adverse effects such as causing weird mutations or even sickness in large enough quantity. It's used as an energy source for industrial purposes and can be downscaled for the personal consumption of the individual.
Manarite is considered rare in many places but there are still underpopulated/underdeveloped places where manarite growth thrives. Seeing as manarite has become this world's oil, it's only natural that growing empires would want to keep these places to themselves.
It is usually found in two forms. Crystaline and liquid pools. However, a third way is when it forms into a gaseous state over liquid manarite lakes. In its liquid and gaseous forms, it's extremely unstable and combustible.
Races:
It is said that the existence of manarite pushed humanity to change in various ways. Elves, Dwarves, Orcs, and other weird and interesting people live on this world and may have all come to be because of manarite exposure. This also means that all the races are connected to humanity in one way or another.
That being said, this allows the players to have a lot of freedom in making the races for their nations.
Magic & Technology:
Magic systems and such are complicated. However, I think it goes without saying that magic in this world can be powerful, however there should be limitations. For now I'll allow people to do what they want, as long as it doesn't rub people the wrong way. I guess, what I'm saying here is...
Don't be an Asshole.
Magitech weapons and technology is all fine and dandy, just don't use magic as a replacement for energy shields or supermassive gearhulks. I too like my automaton armies and skyships, but if you're going to have massive fuckoff weapons, technology, or magic, there has to be a very good reason for you to have them. I think that's fair for everyone. At the end of the day, this is a roleplay, a game - we're here to have fun so don't get too serious about things.
If you've gotten this far that means you're thinking about it. Well I've got the general layout of the Nation sheet ready if you'd like to make the plunge. I don't really care too much if you're overly detailed or if you'd like to keep things short and to the point. But do understand that as a GM I'd have to read through several of these (Not saying I don't want to, but it's more like it'll be slower if there are many that are like more than 10 pages long). That being said, I don't mind either way, I'm always interested in what people come up with.
I'd also like to thank you for taking the time to check out this interest check. If you have anything you want to talk about or ask about the setting feel free to hit me up. I'm pretty friendly, sure I get shy at times, but I'm trying to break out of the mold. Without further ado, here's the NS.
Name of your Nation: (this should be obvious)
(Space reserved for an image that represents your nation, maybe a flag or something)
Type of Government: (Are you a dictatorship, an Autocracy, a Monarchy, etc?)
Demographics & Population: (What races are here? What's your overall population? I'm not a hard numbers guy, so to make it easy, 1 mil is small, 3-5 mil is large, 6-10 mil is massive)
Governance & Politics: (This is where you put how your people govern themselves in more detail. Do they have a houses of parliament? Do they settle things with duels? Do they have unique people leading different branches of government?)
Culture & Society: (What kind of people are you, what are your unique traditions and such?)
Magic & Technology: (This is where you put what your people have achieved. Are they golem masters that create automatons? Do they have some weird invention that makes them different from the rest?)
Military Overview: (Explain your military power. What are your orders of battle? What's your doctrine?)
Additional Info: (Miscellaneous information that don't really fit in any category.)
James' thoughts brewed with so many questions that he could hardly hear any other thought. 'Who was Jeanne to me? Who am I to her? What can I not remember?' So many damned questions that he couldn't answer. Usually he'd be very contained with these emotions but not being able to figure himself out is frustrating. Who should know him better but himself after all, though it seems that wasn't exactly the case anymore when a frenchwoman knows more about him than even he does.
"... The coast of Étretat, six years ago." He ended up whsipering those words to himself as if it was some magic incantation or some formulation that'd bring his memories back. Futile and naive. So instead he thought of ways to remember, there was bound to be some information of the events that had happened six years ago, especially on that coast. 'What had happened when I was twelve years old?'
At the same time, his mission is no where near complete. However, he had already met his target at least once and is in a precarious situation. One wrong move and the entire operation is scuppered. He pinched the bridge of his nose and began to arrange all his thoughts accordingly. That's when another person he had neglected appeared. A angry Bunga. She bombarded him with questions, some of a personal nature. These were questions he did not need at the moment for they were things even he didn't know. 'Was it love? Perhaps, she was elated in the letter to him. She even seemed slightly curious and playful before I said the wrong things. Was what happened in the past something that forbidden and so my memories were subsequently erased? I do not know'
"We were acquaintances once. She asked me for a favor and I did that for her and we talked for a short while." He answered with a small, pleasant looking smile, however ingenuine it was. For now, he had to put up his walls, he could not afford an slip up. Not now. He'll get his answers eventually, but he had to put his objectives first and deal with the people around him appropriately.
"Sorry, it took so long that I had assumed you must've left without me. I couldn't exactly contact you to make sure and well, it was the logical thing to assume." He apologized and offered a seat, "... To make up for it, please, take a seat. Drinks and pastries will be on my tab for today."
The two, with Jeanne taking the lead, slipped out from the emergency exit of the hospital and strolled out onto the cobbled streets of the district. As morning transitioned into noon and appetites were reawoken, the streets became populated once more with students looking for an interesting meal. The Frenchwoman had no particular interest in food, however, and instead, she drew James to a small, enclosed courtyard perhaps a ten-minute walk away. Tropical flowers bloomed in the garden, heavy, fruity scents seeping into the warm air as they convened upon a small, white gazebo.
“Well,” Jeanne spoke, seating herself. “Was there a complication with my request, James?”
He sat down in turn and replied, ”No, in-fact, I have it right here…” James took a set of vials wrapped in brown paper and a simple string. He then set it down on the table and took a seat opposite from her before continuing ”... From the reactions of the people in the room earlier, I take it you didn’t tell them I was involved with you in any way?”
She took the package in her hand, untying the string to peek at the contents. Her expression did not change, but she did nod, acknowledging some value in his work. Liquid chemistry, indeed, was one of the few things in the world that had not been affected overtly by the Formulizations of the Polymaths. “It is a present,” Jeanne replied. “I had presumed that if you wished to hand this to me in person, you would have arranged to rendezvous, rather than hunt for me. Are you so eager to see me after all this time?”
James crossed his legs and rested his hands onto them as he steepled his fingers. ”More curious than anything, you could’ve chosen anybody for this task. Why me? Was it because I’m Bang’s roommate or something else?”
Jeanne turned her face slightly to the side, her right eye peering into his mien. After a long moment, she spoke, more statement than question, “You don’t remember.”
His mind began to process what she had just said, but as far as he could remember he never met Jeanne or perhaps it was because he had forgotten. James then broke his silence as his curiosity piqued, his gaze fixed towards her “Remember? What do you mean?”
But as he fixed his gaze, he saw her own expression turn from the faintest glimmer of curiosity to one of crushing coldness. She leaned back, then stood up. “I meant nothing by it. Is that all, Mr. Porter?”
James stood, he never broke his gaze, never once blinked, for once James wasn’t calm. “Ms. Bordeaux, if you know something about my accident and my past I would very well like to know. As it stands there’s a regrettably large part of my life that I frankly do not remember. You seem like you know me and even treat me as a close friend. What do I not remember?”
Heightened emotion, however, had never been something that gave Jeanne pause. She favoured him with one last look, and the words that left her mouth were filled with a withering frigidness. “We were friends once. We are strangers now. Good day, sir.”
Without the finality of a sword through a length of taut rope, the Frenchwoman strode off, her blonde hair disappearing between the rosebrushes of the cobbled path.
And yet, the tropical breeze carried on her final words.
“We met, six years past, upon the coast of Étretat.”
He stared out in a daze as his mind tried to process what that meant, this mission has become more complicated than he had originally been told. He adjusted his top hat once again and took his cane into both hands, wringing it tightly at first with frustration before easing himself to let out huff. In his mind came a question, ’now what?’. He shook his head twice and head off to brew over a cup of hot coffee.
James read the newspaper and sipped his coffee. The usually black drink was colored a creamy brown and had a sweet roasted aroma. He savored the smell and its sweet taste as the warmth from his drink circulated throughout his body. Jeanne's defense team was quite a stellar cast and as it would so happen Bang was there alongside some other Polymaths. Catching up on all these situations James could only deduce that perhaps last night's incident may have something to do with Jeanne's predicament. After all, who else would attempt to break curfew? They would have many valid reasons to do so for their own investigation.
As he was lost in thought thinking of his next steps, the person he was waiting for happily waved to him and called his attention.
"James! I finally found you, yay!"
She happily made her way over to him and thought about ways to convince her to go check the hospital with him when she conveniently provided that for him.
"How are things James? Are you doing alright? I heard from my friends that there's some chaotic happenings last night. Have you heard about it yourself? Gah! A part of me wanted to investigate the issue myself. But, I have to keep my appointment with you. So... how are you James?"
"Ah I'm doing quite grand, thank you. Though, it is interesting that you'd say that. I was just thinking of going to the hospital to see if there was anything we could do there. I'm quite interested in those involved. Who knows, perhaps we'll meet Bang along the way."
Night turned to day, the brewing process was complete. An extra strong brew of so-called 'sleeping medicines'. Now it was time to send the meds off. But beforehand, he would construct a letter expressing the desire to meet.
My dear friend Jeanne,
I've got your medicine for you. It is unfortunate to hear about your circumstances. Perhaps you'd allow me to grace you with a visit? If not, then can we arrange to meet at some point? It'd be good to catch up since we weren't able to talk during the introductory party.
Sincerely, James Porter.
P.S. Please do be careful with the medicine. It's a special brew made by me after all.
After writing the letter, he secured it to the vial he had of the sleeping serum. He then made preparations as per usual before heading out, this time with newspaper in hand. He was off to meet with Bunga, he knew however that she'd be quite disappointed with not having Bang in toe. However, with the news of last night's incidents, he had an inkling feeling of where they might be.
"Off to the infirmary then..." He dusted the top of his hat and secured it attop his head and started to walk towards the agreed meeting place Bunga and James had agreed upon.
No worries. I did another reply myself, just to wrap things up on Favian's end. You can do a closing post for Aslain if you want or just leave things here, either way I think we've reached a good stopping point.
Thanks for the good fight! If you ever want to write stuff again together (arena or otherwise) then feel free to hit me up in PMs.
Sure thing! I'm thinking of doing more arena stuff soon, but I might get tied up in real life for a while. Thinking maybe a fantasy scythe wielder would be nice to do next time.
The roar of the crowd was deafening, but when the final blows came, they fell silent. Two organizers came to break apart the fighting. Realizing that a killing blow by both Aslain and Favian, the organizers huddled for a moment contemplating on how to score the two.
In France, it would've been more clear. The dead would be on the ground, writhing, gasping for air while they drowned in their own blood. The field of Agincourt filled Aslain's mind, he looked towards Favian and thought about whether or not he had fought alongside this man in a campaign for the crown. He was a capable fighter, as much as his own self. He stood waiting for the judges to decide who would win this fight. Then one man stepped up.
"We announce that the winner of today's duel to be Sir Favian Porcell. Only just did he edge away points from his opponent. He landed the first blow, defended magnificently against an equally strong opponent, and delivered a mortal wound to the back of Sir Aslain's head..."
The crowd cheered but, the man wasn't finished, "... However, to give Sir Aslain his due, Sir Aslain was able to land a mortal blow towards his opponent's gut. This would have also proven fatal, not nearly as immediate, but fatal. To fight despite disadvantage, despite losing his weapon, despite being hit on his right shoulder, Sir Aslain is without a doubt, a knight worth noting."
Sir Aslain picked up his poleaxe and walked over to Sir Favian. he raised his visor and held a hand out to shake, "Congratulations, Sir Favian, I admit total defeat. But rest assured, I look forward to another duel and next time I shall not let you take the win so easily."
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I'm a space cat.
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;"><div class="bb-center"><img src="https://fontmeme.com/permalink/180608/d4bbef67240f61a7ae8c3bbfaf8eb569.png" /></div><br><div class="bb-center"><img src="https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/faca2651-b94f-4700-a18c-c9c60cad6818.jpg" /></div><br><br>I'm a space cat.</div>
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