Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.
Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.
The comfortable, elegant tranquility of the scene came to an abrupt end as a dark figure dropped from the sky. It hit the ground on shaky legs, swaying as it worked to regain its balance. Such a fall should have been impossible to bear, but after getting attacked by monster dogs Kirsty's definition of 'impossible' remained in flux. Instead of wasting time with such considerations she fixed the newcomer with a frightened look, even as her counterpart's flawless lip curled into a scowl.
This intruder, with an intimidating mask, shoddy clothes, and a cagey manner, commanded the quintessential manner of a young goon or homeless wreck compelled by the foreign substances pushing through their withered veins to do something drastic. Just when Kirsty was starting to feel at ease again too, in this beautiful avenue that she'd accepted as a sanctuary against the nightmarish unknown. “Vagabond,” she heard the lady growl at the newcomer. In the corner of her eyes she saw movement, but when she turned to look, alarmed by the possibility of being surrounded, she spotted servants in white tuxedos and vests putting aside their dishes of refreshments to form up on her table on both sides. She identified them immediately as the lady's attendants, and seemingly on her side.
In response, the intruder pulled out a pistol and a knife, although calling it a stubby machete would have been more accurate. Kirsty froze, terrified. With possession of guns outlawed in the UK, and widely feared, seeing one could only mean one thing: violence was in order. The servants also flinched, stepping back. Liam, who'd arrived but remained out of sight, questioned the intruder but got no time for a response. As Kirsty shrank away, the lady rose, her indignant face fixed on the Raven. “How dare you barge in on us like this, you vile creature! You should be on your knees in worship! That you would level your crude weapons at me, the selfless saint, the fountain kindness and charity...where's your reverence!?”
Her features marred by scorn, the lady extended her arm in a gesture of dismissal. A dark wave billowed outward to strike the Raven and send her flying. Then, the lady turned to a horrified Kirsty. “Don't be afraid, love,” she told her, taking her hand in her own. “If we want to live, we must work together to banish this evildoer. If she strikes me down, this oasis will be overrun with darkness. I need your help. Understood?”
Kirsty nodded emphatically, thinking of the hounds, thinking of the vicious weapons of the Raven, and most of all thinking of her obligation. Some of the things the lady had said didn't quite sit right with her, but this was different. If someone was in need, she couldn't turn away. “Yes, ma'am. What can I do?”
“Behold our supremacy,” the lady told her, straightening up and pointing out at the Raven. “Peons. Take her!”
As one the eleven servants moved forward. They sprinted toward the Raven, melting as they did. Kirsty could only watch, confused, as they took on new forms. Some were marble-white and smooth, others pitch black and furious, but all bore oversized hearts visible on both sides of their bodies, crescent-shaped heads, and tridents. They attacked the Raven together, the dark ones with pure aggression and the light ones with strategy to surround and trap her.
Kirsty looked back at the lady. “What are they doing? Are you making them kill her?”
The lady smirked. “Of course, darling. She threatened to kill us. Us. Veritable saints whose lives are labors of love for our fellow man. Only a devil would strike down an angel. She deserves to suffer.”
Something twisted in Kirsty's gut. She looked again at the features of this woman, their uncanny familiarity. “That's not right,” she said. “Nobody should suffer. That's what kindness is. I'm not fit to judge whether others deserve it.”
A look of annoyance crossed the lady's face. “Of course you are. We are. The hardship we've endured for others, caring for them above ourselves...that's what makes us better than the rest of them. Our station is above them, showering them with our love and benevolence, and all they have to do is worship and reward us. We've earned it!”
Kirsty backed away from the table, and the lady turned to face her head-on. Over in the distance, the one-sided battle raged on. “Who...who are you?”
“You.” The shadow smiled, her yellow eyes flashing. “I'm the real you. The one beneath the mask. Selfless, kind, considerate, wanting the best for others, the perfect little do-gooder...that's the mask you wear so that society accepts you. We both know the real reason.”
Kirsty's knees were wobbling. Her breath had quickened, and she felt closed to fainting. Her eyes drifted to the desperate struggle, then back to the shadow's gleeful face. “No...”
“Ohhhh, yes,” she laughed, putting her hands on her hips. “That's the route we're using to get ahead! To get people to like us, so we can reap the rewards! Who the hell needs personality or talent? If we're there when people need us, when people need support and help and friendship, their gratitude is ours to manipulate! They'll have to grace us in return! Their favor, their connections. We'll ride their coattails to Heaven's door!”
“NO!” Kirsty screamed. Her world was spinning, her mind reverberating like a glass reaching its resonant frequency and about to shatter. She squeezed her head in her hands, trying to hold her pieces together but quickly falling apart. “That's not true! I'm not some p-pathetic, simpering p-parasite! You hear me, you b-bi...you jerk!” She pulled herself up using the chair and skittered backward, her hand held outward toward the shadow. “Get away! We're not the same!”
“So, we can't get along after all, hm?” The shadow crossed her arms and climbed atop the table. “Disappointing. And here I thought you cared so little for yourself you'd accept anything. Well, if that's the case, then one of us is going to have to eat the other. And if my choices are eat or be eaten, well...I choose to eat.”
Yellow light flooded from her eyes, and her form shimmered and melted. When Kirsty found herself able to see again, she looked out with dread at a new monstrosity. Above the street floated the golden figure of a copious woman clad in flowing white silk vestments, twice as tall as Kirsty herself. From her ample waist extended two great wings, but rather than pinfeathers they sported numerous legs of cattle, and her own legs split into three-pronged cow hooves at the knee. From her head of snow-white hair with pronounced twintails rose thick, curled horns. She stared down at Kirsty with a look of pity, a golden idol of unabashed exorbitance.
“Consider this mercy. You need not pride yourself on suffering any longer.”
I'm very much looking forward to what everyone else is working on. I'd like to get this RP started without too much waiting, ideally in less than a week. In the meantime, I've come up with an example character, a contact from the Interest that will be working alongside yours in this raid. She's a good example of how some pretty outlandish things can be accomplished in this fantastical setting.
Name: Nadine
Species: Bound myth possession-type
Job: Martial Artist
Appearance: Although she stands at an average height, Nadine possesses a number of unusual features. Most striking is her hair, a long, voluminous, and curly mop of lustrous green. A close second however is her ears, long and tapered just enough to not quite be human. She boasts a full figure that she isn't afraid to show off with a sleek black leotard, with matching leggings and long gloves. Over this she wears a white jacket, shorts, and boots, giving her a semblance of a flashy MMA fighter. Like this.
Personality: Generally serious, no-nonsense, and professional, Nadine makes it a point to be polite to just about everybody, even enemies. She's the sort who understands that there's a proper way to do everything and not only intends to do it but would prefer that everyone else stick to it too, thank you very much. She's not very outgoing and has little in the way of a sense of humor, making her a little stark and even a stick in the mud at times. Observing her, one gets the sense that she's haunted by some sort of melancholy she can't put aside, one that keeps her distant. However, Nadine has an unfortunate quirk; she is disproportionately quick to fall hopelessly in love. While she won't approach anyone she falls for and discourages relationships, her feelings are rather easy to see in her easily flustered behavior.
Background: The original Nadine was a passionate go-getter of a woman who, after a long and arduous journey, attained her dream of fighting in the UFC. Cheered on by her husband Branson, an aspiring artist, she did quite well for a time, although not so well as to make her name famous. Her career fizzled out after a while, and desperate to achieve glory of her own, she made the choice to fight in the underground Restless League, an illegal fighting ring taking place inside Dreaming Los Angeles. Duking it out on television in a realm of distortion -not to mention the everpresent lurking threat of monsters- was a terrific risk, but Nadine became addicted to the thrill.
As one might expect, one day everything came crashing down. On a day of qualifiers where a number of fighters were fighting for placement, a creature wandered inside. Many of the fighters, some of whom possessed distortion, rallied to take it on together and become heroes on live T.V. Their victory might have been a turning point for the Dreaming City, a sign that the nightmares could be beaten by outsiders and those trapped within freed from the Lucid Dream. The creature, however, fought back with vicious strength. It mauled several of the fighters to death, badly wounded Nadine, and even partially devoured one before being driven off by gunfire. Everyone fled, but the commotion drew other nightmares. Nadine watched audience members and crew stuffed into bags, pulled down holes, and snatched behind walls, and in the end barely escaped with her life.
Nadine was forced to spend a long time in recovery, obliged to rely on her husband's earning both to live and to pay the medical bills. It wasn't long before all they saved went to nothing, and both found themselves in dire straights. Not skilled or renowned enough yet to support his family, Branson needed a breakthrough, and like Nadine before him he looked for a supernatural solution. In his childhood he'd visited the Grove with his family and been inspired by both its beauty and the uncanny link between the Unseen of that world and the myths of his own. The online records of human findings in the Grove indicated the existence of an Unseen that would grant artistic inspiration called Leanan Sidhe, and given his own Irish heritage he felt sure he could draw one out. He and Nadine spent the last of their money on a trip to the Grove, and after some searching, they found none other than the fairy they sought.
Branson implored it to bond with him, but the empathetic fairy asked to bond with Nadine instead. The union went off without a hitch, and in the process revitalized Nadine somewhat to boot. The couple set up in a town in the Grove, and lo and behold, Nadine could entreat her companion to inspire Branson at will. His works of art stunned the people who saw them, and in no time the two had enough money to return to earth and set up shop for real. Yet even as Branson's candle burned bright, it burned short. For the curse of the Leanan Sidhe bestowed inspiration to those they loved in exchange for withering their lives away. In less than a year, Branson was dead. Nadine, wracked by guilt and responsibility, lost the will to live. When her will died, the Leanan Sidhe took over her body, but the process left the fairy irreparably changed. Going by the host's name, she determined to live her life as a human, deservedly banished from the land of the Unseen for her own capriciousness. Unable to strive for a position of prominence, she hopped on the train of anomaly-hunting using a mixture of martial arts and fey magic. Her unique power and status eventually caught the eyes of the Interest, which recruited her. It gave her a real place to belong, and a real fight to believe in: ending the abuses of other dimensions on humankind.
Talents: As a magic-enhanced mixed martial arts fighter, Nadine possesses notable strength and speed, although her speed is the more remarkable of the two. She can summon the ethereal white-winged butterflies of the Grove, although that requires concentration, and use them for a variety of purposes. They can fly out as projectiles either speedily or forcefully in various formations, shattering into sparkling dust on impact. While they're out, she can command them to fly in certain ways. She can coalesce them into silken objects, which she in fact does for her boots, jacket, and shorts to have a supply on her at all times. She can also de-coalesce her body into butterflies to perform dashes, either for movement, attack, or both. This de-coalescence can take the form of a butterfly explosion. While de-coalesced, she is reduced to her 'true form' as a bright green fairy the size of a butterfly, in which she can fly at extreme speed in short lines, although she can bounce off surfaces while doing so.
Other: Her epithet as a member of the Interest is 'Dulcet Dust Breaker', but it's always shortened to 'Dust-breaker'. Her weaknesses are primarily her inability to sustain much damage and the relative straightforwardness of her fighting style. As such, she fights best with a more versatile partner.
So I have a couple character ideas. I've built a basic sheet for both, but the main idea for one is to be a zoologist with a small collection of the various animals from the other dimensions for study. If possible, some of these animals would range from the pendulum creatures, and the human face slugs to perhaps a yokai or the corrupted.
The second character would be a paralyzed man who makes a corpus like machine which is essentially a flesh exosuit that enhances his normal biological features. One of the main draws of it being from corpus tissues would be that it could sync with his biological functions, and self repair/adapt.
The zoologist could work. Such a character would need to have some pronounced security measures for the more dangerous specimens. If by corrupted you mean Clockers, they are still considered people, so whether your zoologist can accept that is something to consider. Yokai can also be sentient, although they're not people. Additional animals could include elemental creatures from Areia, gross flesh things from Corpus, earth animals mutated by exposure to phenomena, and monsters extracted from Dreaming Cities.
@Archmage MC, I have a concern about the backstory. Blights are not organisms native to Corpus but specifically people infested and metamorphosed by its systems. Corpus has no people nor human intelligence in it, so in order to have a human intelligence and personality, your character would need to be a Blight rather than a native monster. Luckily, everything still works pretty much the same even with such a change. You'd just need to alter her backstory to include Delly's life as a human prior to Corpus, where she would probably have been absorbed into some kind of organ and scrambled into the supercell mush that her intelligence is spread across. Since she's specifically not a genius and a happy sort of person, she could have been the bubbling happy-go-lucky sort that was an assistant to (or perhaps relation or girlfriend of) a scientist, explorer, harvester, or daredevil who was looking into Corpus and had her tag along.
we're thinking someone who makes their living exploring the deep and guiding people through it to different worlds - so much so that they've taken on some fish-like traits.
That is a nice idea. I was toying with the notion of the waters of the Deep having an overexposure effect, perhaps emanating from the ghostly leviathans that drift through it. A Deep explorer would certainly come close enough often enough to trigger mutation.
I’m continuing the conversation from the Interest Check. So in response to your points, here are some of my own:
- My character would be the son of two Kin. They basically tolerate him being a Deviant for now, and are pretty much just waiting for him to eventually become a Kin as well. To that end they encourage him to indulge in entertainment, which lead him to playing video games a lot. But unlike the Kin, he becomes interested in understanding computers rather than just consuming the content of others. This would lead to him dabbling in hacking. - As he becomes older he begins to despise the Kin lifestyle, which leads him to Deviant chat rooms. He quickly becomes involved with a Deviant revolutionary group. They start as anarchists armed with knives and bats, causing trouble. This eventually draws the attention of the Jesters, or whatever the Cave authorities would be called, who quickly crack down on the Deviants. - Realizing that they were backed into a corner, most of the revolutionaries fled the Cave, going to another world. My character would have fled to Earth, where he made a life in the frontier, receiving proper combat training. This went on for several years before he was contacted by the other revolutionaries. They decided that it was time to begin raids on the Cave. For fear of becoming Kin themselves, each operative was limited in how long they could remain in the Cave. My character would of just finished a round of raids, leaving the Cave and returning to Earth. When he is approached by the Interest, who offer aid for the revolutionaries if he assists them.
That’s just my thoughts. If all that sounds good I’ll begin working on a character sheet.
It began with the people of the world. Pestilence drove them apart, into seclusion, and into condemnation of their fellows. But man was not made for living alone, caged by fear. Tragedy and loss rattled the population, and unrest suffused the globe, escalating into at-times violent opposition. Isolation and division severed the connections of the world, leaving many adrift and in despair. From the other side of the wall a song could be heard, dim and muffled, but as the cracks grew longer the tune became clearer. It was a song of otherness, of restlessness, its simple and beautiful suggestion that this tormented world couldn't possibly be real. Many lost touch with reality, sinking into the gloom that surrounded them, dreaming unsettling and incomprehensible dreams when they slept, and seeing a unfamiliar world that flashed and blurred when they could not, staring into their ceilings and computer screens. As the year got older, even the weather of the world grew aimlessly active. The people could feel it—that sensation of impending disaster, of teetering on a precipice and peering down into the bottomless pit below, and of wondering if what lay below could possibly be worse than what lay behind.
In December, the cracked wall, groaning under the weight of the song on the other side, gave way. For nineteen days and nights, reports came in across the globe of bizarre sightings, of colors that moved and danced, of water where none should be, of things that moved in strange ways in the corners and the shadows. Then the first Well opened, and the rest was history.
All over the world, Wells of bright blue water sprang forth where none should be. Within, no matter what lay there before, lay an infinite Deep. Some Wells came and went like riptides, divulging otherworldly things before sucking worldly things back in, and some came like earthquakes, changing the terrain where they erupted. Whether sanctioned as Divers by the governments of the world or not, people ventured into the Deep, and found an astral sea with no surface. Among all the inexplicable things the Divers saw down there was one discovery: the existence of other wells, like those they came through. And of other worlds beyond them.
For a long time there was chaos. Even as exploratory teams traveled through the helpful currents of the Deep to other worlds, establishing bases and giving them names, other things filtered through onto Earth from beyond. Some arrived subtly, others like explosions, changing the world irreparably. Chief among them was the Lucid Dream, taking over the great cities where multitudes of people lived their lives, clouding them in a tangible malaise, creating surreal doldrums that cultivated distortion. Countless people were changed, both on Earth and other worlds, giving rise to entire subspecies collectively falling under the classification 'More Than Human'--MTH for short, pronounced (and often spelled) 'myth'.
But that's old news. Twenty-eight years have passed, with weirdness becoming the new normal. A state of equilibrium was reached, allowing business to proceed more or less as usual, but the scars of those early years never faded. The Lucid Cities remain effectively lost to the outside world, their residents living unthinking lives on repeat. Gone is the security of the old world, making whole countries into frontiers.
It's in this changed world that you live, and not just as a civilian, no. You're a problem solver, the sort who can fend for yourself. And you or your employers have been contacted by the Interest. A shadowy organization extant principally in rumor and superstition, the Interest has requested your help in a raid on a base of the infamous Gilgamesh Co. Established in the early days of the Opening, as it came to be called, it sought to boost the economies and livelihoods of the world by abusing the resources of other dimensions, and abusing their employees -including the criminals, the purposeless, and the desperate- to get them. Though long since publicly denounced and dissolved, Gilgamesh continues to operate in secret around the globe, and the Interest seems eager to see this branch put down. To that end they're offering fabulous sums of money for professional help, and other things besides—they seem to know exactly what it is you need.
So, a raid on an evil corporation in a world changed by the Opening to other dimensions and peopled by those deemed More Than Human...are you in?
Other Dimensions
After the Opening, Wells emerge across the globe that offer access to the Deep, and through it access to other dimensions. Some wells only appear briefly, but others stay permanently, tinging the surrounding area with features of the nearest dimension. The trip can be made with conventional diving equipment or submarines, or even without as long as one gets really lucky with the currents. Still, travel is risky and inconvenient. Since this RP will be taking place on Earth, knowing the other dimensions isn't that important.
The Cave – A rich subterranean world of massive caverns. Bioluminescent fungi of all shapes and sizes illuminate a safe and peaceful haven, its temperature comfortable and its meaty flora bountiful. The air is thick, and vapors carry a stimulant that excite the imagination while slowing down biological processes. The lower one goes in the Cave, the heavier the Haze becomes; at its depths, its strong enough to be hallucinogenic and to halt the body's biology completely, eliminating the need for food and sleep, and preventing aging. Since the Cave's discovery, a number of human colonies have flourished there, with large amounts of people from earth immigrating for the sake of a life of indulgent indolence, free of any hardship in paradise. The Haze is addictive, and long-term partakers undergo mutation that intensifies over time, becoming Kin.
The Grove – a world of forest steeped in endless twilight, lit up by bioluminescent flora, countless twinkling stars, and dancing motes of light. Its landmasses matches that of Earth exactly, although the terrain differs. It is the only world known to man with its own inhabitants: the Unseen. Split between the more humanoid and diminutive Fey and and more malevolent and variable Yokai, the denizens of the Grove bear unmistakable similarities to creatures mentioned in folklore throughout human history. Which one shaped the other remains to be seen, but humans can form connections with them and become Bound. Though many human settlements have been established here, the interference of the Unseen prevents large-scale development.
Morass - A world of mud beneath a pale yellow sky. From the mud its oddly-shaped islands rise like the tops of plateaus and the heights of mountain ranges, and occasionally they descend as well. Seismic scanners have long identified vast things moving beneath the mud, slowly but surely wandering the realm beneath. Morass is too unstable and harsh to be widely populated, but it's possible to live aboard ships and stationary rigs. The existence of the remnants of an ancient civilization deep below the mud has driven two very disparate industries in this dimension: scientific research, and dredging. Dredge crews operate in secret as penal labor facilities on behalf of various interests on earth, risking the wrath of the world's dangerous, bone-armored life-forms while pulling up artifacts and resources from the ancient cities deep below.
Horizon - A world of endless sunset sky and dark clouds, which themselves form the only terrain. It demonstrates rare weather patterns in the form of elemental drifts, in which streams of wind, fire, water, and snow dance across the sky. Most interestingly, while Horizon extends infinitely in a lateral sense, it loops vertically. Anything that falls, for instance from a cloud, will pass that same cloud a short time after, again and again ad nauseum. It has no naturally occurring life or resources of its own, making life and even something as simple as exploration here extremely difficult. As such, Horizon is inhabited solely by those who choose to live an ascetic life in pursuit of enlightenment. Temples, monasteries, and even cathedrals long predating Horizon's discovery reside on and within the clouds themselves, slowly drifting through the infinite sky. Those seeking enlightenment live in these structures, and at great length to some attain it. As they tread the path, they slowly grow wings, and upon finding enlightenment most ascend into the sky, while others remain behind as Shepherds.
Pendulum - A dimension of gargantuan machinery. Clad in the unflinching twilight of a purple atmosphere that's light enough to see by and thick enough to obscure distant objects, the hanging towers of brazen cogs, wheels, and plates stretch as far as the eye can see. Pendulum is a world in perpetual motion, the make of its towering engines as unknown as their purpose. Human ingenuity has allowed adjunct devices to be attached to machinery close to its main wells that link back through the Deep to earth, providing power. Tearing up machinery for salvage is profitable but tricky work, since one wrong move can wreck a vital function to keeping an entire platform from plummeting into the abyss. Clockwork animals live on the machines, maintaining an artificial ecosystem and providing the most reliable source of quality parts. The air is highly static, and low-yield lightening storms often sweep through the towers. Some sections of Pendulum are polluted by a creeping, oily, black and yellow techno-corruption.
Corpus - A visceral dimension of flesh. Either the world itself is alive, with meat its dirt and bone its rock, or exists within a gigantic organism. The high chance of sickness, the tricky terrain, and the presence of hostile fauna make it fairly dangerous and unstable, so the risks of coming here typically outweigh any rewards. Worst of all is the environment's propensity to 'eat' unwary travelers, either absorbing or infesting and then rejecting them as dangerous Blights. Corpus's biggest benefits to humanity is its abundance of natural tissues. Some formations, like veins of rare ore, possess resilient 'uber cells' that can allow them to survive even if removed and can act as binders for other materials. This has led to the invention of 'living weapons', an experimental arms technology.
Areia Grande - Better known as Areia, it is a desert dimension of permanent day, its multicolored suns painting monolithic formations of white sand and stone in magnificent displays of color. It remains harsh and difficult to inhabit, moreso than an Earth desert thanks to the verticality of its landscape, but it's widely regarded as a gorgeous and inspirational tourist destination. Few, however, know of its secrets. A percentage of humans are affected mentally by the celestial colors, inducing dizziness and drunkenness at first that eventually lead to paranoia and delusion. Those who wander out into the desert on their might rarely stumble upon hidden oases taking the forms of other biomes replete with elemental power. The materials found in such oases are extremely useful, especially for creating elemental weapons, but eating the fruit can cause debilitating elemental afflictions or even monstrous transformation.
Subspecies
Though all technically human, various More Than Human (myth) subspecies exist in this world. Due to their newness, there aren't really separate cultures, though that hasn't stopped people from trying to establish them.
Some subspecies are uniformly deleterious to humanity and/or the world. These monster subspecies are considered kill-on-sight if threatening or outside of their home dimensions, and their escape into other dimensions are considered emergencies.
Kin – a magic subspecies. Inhabitants of the Cave who've been mutated by exposure to the Haze. The mutations can be quite extreme and even highly debilitating depending on time in the Cave, and no two are quite alike. The only observable logic is that they appear to be warped by their desires. Long-term Kin carry Haze within themselves and can use it to cast illusions or glamours. They typically resist leaving the Cave strongly, but if forced out, they can be brought to their senses, typically at the cost of permanent depression.
Deviant – a physical subspecies. A person either traveled to or born into the Cave with a resistance to the Haze. They develop minor mutation in the form of demonic or bestial features, but otherwise resist change. They're energetic, hardy of constitution, and tend toward aggressive personalities, putting them at odds with Kin society. If they don't leave the Cave, however, they will eventually succumb and become Kin.
Bound – a magic subspecies. Someone who's formed a bond with a supernatural entity of the Grove. Difficult to cleanly catalog, they run the gamut in terms of traits and abilities, and even the method of bonds' establishment. Bonds can be made through heartfelt connections, contracts, and even possession. Successful possession physically alters the host, but other methods do not. Bound have limited access to their partners' abilities, only able to manifest and command them for brief periods unless they allow their partners to take over, which can result in possession of the entities don't give them up.
Masque – a physical subspecies. Once in a while the cranes and machines of Morass dredge crews bring up odd sluglike creatures the size of rats, each bearing oddly human features. These Faces, acting with subtle intelligence, seek humans in isolation to form a parasitic bond. Once inside a human, they merge with the host and rapidly alter his or her internals, leaving only the exterior intact and human. The hosts maintain their personalities, aware of the changes as well as whatever physical abilities they gain as a result.
Shepherd – a divine subspecies. Someone whose life of ascetic self-reflection in Horizon resulted in enlightenment, but gained the knowledge that he or she was chosen to remain behind. Able to fly freely through air and the Deep alike on flawless wings, they either remain in Horizon to guide others toward enlightenment, or journey beyond to evangelize in other dimensions. Most humans and other myths fear and avoid them to an extent, wary of their dedication to an unknown authority. Shepherds live simply and alone, or with one another, and travel often to meet new people. They exhibit kinesis, the ability to apply force to themselves and expel it outward, and can perform healing.
Lost - a divine subspecies. Someone whose life of ascetic self-reflection in Horizon resulted in enlightenment, but upon ascending experienced rejection and fell back down with cursed wings and some degree of mental scarring. Outcasts in Horizon, they return to Earth or travel to other dimensions to try and live their lives. They possess the kinesis of the Shepherds to a stronger degree but have less control and range, so much so that they can force themselves to fly despite whatever's become of their wings.
Blight – a physical monster subspecies. Someone infested and grotesquely deformed by malignant biological subsystems in Corpus. Most are little more than monsters driven by a need to consume and reproduce, bringing sickness wherever they go, although they maintain some shreds of their human minds. Some who aren't completely infested do maintain their minds, however. Killing them on sight is considered standard practice, if one is capable. They're very dangerous, and any that make it to other dimensions are considered emergency threats that must be dealt with.
Clockers – a technological monster subspecies. If touched by the corruption found within Pendulum, a human will begin the process of clockwork conversion starting at the contact point and spreading inward before manifesting outward. Due to being contagious and not very self-aware they're not allowed to leave Pendulum or come near humans or other myths, instead forced to live in their own secluded societies. Clockers outside of Pendulum are typically considered kill-on-sight. Any outbreaks that appear outside are considered emergency threats.
Elementals – a magical subspecies. A person who's been altered by consuming a fruit from an elemental oasis in Areia Grande. In small doses, a person can gain minor elemental powers (Elpo), but there's a fine line between that and elemental affliction (Elaf), which is the middle state. An Elaf has some power as a byproduct of the affliction that he or she suffers from, and may be classified as a monster subspecies depending on the severity of the affliction. Overdosing on fruit can result in a huge elemental monstrosity (Elmo) driven by an overriding need to destroy, and which are considered monster subspecies.
Haunt - a mixed subspecies. Nowadays, even death isn't necessarily the end. Whether brought back by technology (physical), eldritch influence (divine) or dark magic (magical), a select few might return from beyond the grave. Some are mindless and destructive, easily fitting the bill for monster subspecies, some maintain their mental faculties. Haunts can be zombies, ghouls, even ghosts. But remember this: not all Haunts that come bearing a human likeness were ever human. There are shores more distant than even the afterlife.
Other - many things are possible. What can you come up with and justify in this setting?
Playing a myth is not necessary. There's plenty of technology, both old and new, for humans to use. And it doesn't take a myth to practice distortion.
Dreaming Cities
The Opening was not an apocalypse, but for many it was the end. Out of the realm between worlds, or from worlds far beyond, swept the Lucid Dream. It spread like a plague through the night sky, tinting the night with odd swirls and colors that crept into the realm of sleep. People all across the world began to dream strange dreams, of distant realms and far-off planes, in incredible detail and color. And they could could remember. And some never woke up.
It happened quickly. Fog spread across the largest cities in the world, Tokyo, Shanghai, Delhi, New York, Beijing, Istanbul, Chicago, and more. Wherever the dreams of multitudes coincided. Afterward, research designated a terminal point for the population of any city: 8.5 million. After that, the inhabitants risked the Lucid Dream. These cities became permanently overcast, separated from the outside world by a barrier of fog, and the places within fell asleep. The people of those cities continued to go about their lives, but dully, numbly, as though sleepwalking. They were in a world where nothing had gone wrong, where everything still made sense. It was as if they chose to ignore the strangeness blossoming all around them, like weeds nobody wanted to prune, or mold nobody wanted to clean.
For from the cracks and corners came the nightmares. Things watching from the drains. Noises in the basements. Spiderwebs between buildings. Buses that run on millipede legs instead of tires. People in the stairwells. Eyes in the traffic lights. Don't look at the face of that man by the tracks. Don't follow those kids beckoning you to play. Don't look too closely at that shape on the building. Don't ask directions from people in hoods. If you pretend they aren't there, they won't come after you. The Dreaming Cities are where the monsters are.
Many Strangers and anomalous entities that come to Earth find their way to Dreaming Cities, some as predators, some just to get by. They are awake, but so too are some of the people. The watchful, the careful, the paranoid. And those who enter with a purpose in mind. Those who stay awake in a Dreaming City have a powerful weapon against the unknown: distortion. Sometimes things happen that aren't quite right, or don't quite make sense. Sometimes people can make them happen. Disappearing around a corner. Finding a lucky deadbolt in a hiding room on the run. A door where there wasn't one. Blending into a crowd, or a wall. Growing and shrinking. An extra magazine.
With some practice, anyone can pull off a few tricks to stay alive or get ahead. Someone with a lot of know-how can really shake things up. At the same time, causing distortions can get unwanted attention. Distortions, after all, are the tools of monsters, and they don't like people turning it against them.
With no authority, anything goes in the Dreaming Cities. That means a world of opportunity for some, so long as they don't provoke the wrong monster. People can be extracted from the Dream, although it takes time, treatment, and a good bit of therapy. There are even some companies that take advantage of and commercialize this strange segment of reality, but one should beware. Not all monsters stay inside city limits, and not all distortions, either.
Strangers
When wells opened the way between worlds, humanity found waterways leading through the Deep to a few new dimensions, but those are by no means the only worlds out there. Once in a while, things drift in from farther still—from beyond. Myriad in their natures, forms, and even existences, these 'strangers' sometimes wind up on earth or its neighboring dimensions and settle in. They can be virtually anything; a phantom circus performing across the globe in secluded places, attracting audiences and always open to recruits. An eldritch thunderstorm rolling through the desert, its touch animating the dead. A self-aware television show with no broadcaster. Strangers aren't available to be played as, but perhaps one factors into your character's backstory, responsible for affecting them or their surroundings in a formative way.
Sheet
Name: (Can be nickname, codename, etc) Species: (Human or myth. If myth, name the type) Job: (Something that describes your character's class or role, IE brawler, gunner, thief) Appearance: Personality: Background: (No need to be exhaustive. Focus on formative events in your character's story, such as how your character became a myth, if applicable. If you're unsure of anything, want to run ideas by me, or want ideas period, please ask) Talents: (Include physical, magical, divine, and technological abilities where applicable. This is also the spot for weapons and equipment. While definitely above street level, potentially quite so, we're not dealing with a team of superheroes here, so don't go too nuts with powers) Other:
Interested in this. My character idea is this: a Deviant born in the Cave, who despises the Kin elite. This led to him joining a revolutionary group where he gathered combat and tech training. After being declared a terrorist he fled the Cave. He would be the hacker/infiltration member of the team. Obviously it would be more fleshed out in the character sheet.
Glad to have you, and yeah, that could work in principal. In fact, that's totally a cool idea for the Cave. Here's a couple points we could use:
-Cave society and tech in general is extremely stagnant, focusing pretty much exclusively on comfort and entertainment for its inhabitants. What offensive tech there is suffers from limited resources and infrastructure, making melee weapons and other such self-contained gear the norm. However, since computers and the net do exist in order to entertain the masses, a hacker could exist there. -A revolutionary group would be primarily Deviants, since Kin are a gigantic majority in the Cave and only care about things that would infringe upon their lifestyles. Kin could be in the group, but they would have to be unusual and take their pleasure from the suffering of others, or general chaos and destruction. -Deviants are despised in the Cave from the moment they're found out, since they're resistant to the Haze that defines the indolent Kin society. Deviants interested in revolution might leave the Cave and return later, potentially with technology or training, but all will eventually time out because of exposure to the Haze and either have to leave for good or risk becoming Kin. -This could maybe even make for a sort of culture in the group that the members do smaller jobs and raids until their time is almost up, at which point they launch a major offensive guaranteed to get the authorities' attention before leaving the Cave for good. Of course, if one is captured during that operation, they might get imprisoned until they become Kin.
Any of this sound doable? We'd also potentially need to establish the existence of anti-troublemaker authorities in the Cave. Certainly there are many who enjoy using their authority to attack others in the name of the common good. It brings to mind the police from We Happy Few on their hunt for Downers, if you've ever heard of that. The Jesters, perhaps? 'Thought Police' would be a little too on the nose.
With that explained, he's good from a character standpoint. The only thing to do would be to rack up some experiences for him, if you so choose. It might be fun to add some meat to his backstory detailing some of the interesting things he's done and been involved with during his career, while the RP's getting set up. Right now the story's fine, but it could be in virtually any world. That could help him get more immersed into this particular one. You're free to make up whatever within the bounds of the setting provided, since there are tons of possibilities, or we could bounce some ideas around.
A real walking arsenal, eh? He seems tough and capable, definitely not on the quirkier side. My question is this: how did he become a Lightning Elpo? Did he go to Areia at some point and find a lightning oasis himself, or as part of a squad? Did he come into conflict with someone there who had and take their fruit? Confiscate it at some point on earth from someone who'd gone to Areia? Why did he eat the fruit? Was he commanded to? Forced to, either by an enemy or in order to beat an obstacle? Or just curious?
In other news, I plan to make an example sheet that might help people in some fashion, and I may add a new world or two (plus associated subspecies) that I've been ruminating on but didn't include initially.
Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.
Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.<br><br>Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.</div>