Maxx

Wild Times at the Earthshine Inn

time to take your shitty 2012 era Sporum sheet format and sex it.

@The Ghost Note

You can sex it up as much as you want.

Wild Times at the Earthshine Inn

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Wild Times at the Earthshine Inn

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"This is the beginning of a new era for mankind, the era of man's cosmic existence."

Sputnik, Public Service Broadcasting

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Welcome to the Solar System, circa 2230. Since the halycon days of Earthly existence, humanity has spread throughout the stars, moons, and asteroids of the solar system, building colonies and extracting resources as they go. With the advantage of advanced resources from the asteroid belt, humans have built incredibly technology, including antimatter-based propulsion, ion cannons, supercapacitors, robotics, quantum computing, and other great advanced to material science. Society exists in a weird place right now, where Earth is beginning to fade in prevalence as space beckons forwards. Many nations that exist currently are still influential however, controlling territories and commanding armadas of spaceships.

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Timeline for Earth Civilization

2021— Current Year.
2021— Mitch McConnell is hit by a bus. This isn’t plot-relevant but it makes me feel good.
2024— Artemis II lands Americans on the lunar south pole. This is the first time humans have been on the Moon in 52 years and prompts increased interest in space exploration and colonization.
2027— Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) lands unmanned probes on Ceres.
2030— The Tesla company lands the first man on Mars. Meanwhile, China’s Chang’e program lands the first non-American on the Moon.
2031— Amid tensions over control of the global market and espionage, World War III breaks out, pitting the United States and the EU against China and its African satellite nations.
2035— African satellite nations of China unify to create the Pan-African Nations. World War III effectively ends.
2038— The first ion-propelled spacecraft is used by NASA to reach Mars, cutting a trip time of 7 months down to 40 days. In the same year, JAXA launches Doriru I, with the goal of assessing the viability of asteroid belt mining.
2040— Artemis IX begins constructing Amphitrite, the first semi-permanent moon base shared by several space agencies. The Houyi Project, an alliance between JAXA, Korean Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), and the Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA), plans to create a second moon base by 2045.
2047— Houyi Base is formed on the Moon.
2048— As the Antarctic Treaty is dissolved, the Antarctic Conflict begins between the USA and Russia. This is the first war to use Photonic Propulsion, primarily in the form of laser weapons. This is also the first war to use spaceflight as a major tactic.
2055— The first ethically genetically-modified baby is born in Nigeria, having been saved from sickle cell anemia by CRISPR-cas9 gene editing. This begins the era of g-mod medicine, and many genetic diseases are decreased in prevalence. Concerns to arise, however, about the usage of CRISPR for eugenic purposes.
2060— The Doriru Project is in full swing, and asteroid mining begins to enrich the technology and economies of Earth nations. After a mission to 16 Psyche brings back its first payload of platinum, Japan becomes the wealthiest nation on Earth. Materials such as platinum, aluminum, iron, nickel, titanium, holmium, neodymium, and gold become incredibly cheap. Technology is rapidly pushed forwards.
2064— The first full-scale quantum supercomputer, called Ozymandias, is developed by IBM. This rapidly increases the speed of computer programming.
2070— With an international coalition working together and advanced resources from the Doriru Program, the Space Elevator is built, connecting the ISS-4 to Earth by way of central India. This makes constructing large craft in space much easier, further paving the way for advanced spaceflight.
2075— Ceres becomes the first permanent settlement not on the Earth or Moon. The Japanese city of New Kyoto is built there, mostly populated by engineers and miners working in the Doriru Project.
2085— the United Arab Emirates develops a colony on Jupiter’s moon Europa, known as Sakhrat-Allah.
2086— The Pan-African Nations form their first lunar base of Yemoja.
2100— The Martian colony of Harmonia becomes the first permanent Martian settlement and is ratified as a US territory.
2080-2120— The Great Melt. Due to polar ice cap melting from climate change, many cities around the world become uninhabitable as flooding destroys them. Within the course of forty years, New York, Hong Kong, Jakarta, London, Tokyo, Singapore, and hundreds of other major Earth cities become nigh-uninhabitable. Melting of polar ice caps alters salinity levels in the sea, causing ocean current disruptions and worldwide weather catastrophe the likes of which have never been seen. During this time, Amphirite, Harmonia, Houyi, New Kyoto, and Yemoja all rise in population as people flee Earth.
2130— Amidst a lack of response from the US to a Martian famine and plague, Harmonia and its satellite colonies band together to become the Martian Federation and secede from the United States. A brief war follows, which the Federation wins.
2133— The Horus I Antimatter rocket is developed. The first of its kind, this rocket allows incredible propulsion speeds, making travel between Earth and Mars about two days.
2190— The Horus IV Antimatter rocket is developed. With this, space travel is cut down to its current speed, give or take a few minutes travel time.
2200— A Martian Federation research team makes a breakthrough in artificial intelligence, leading to the “birth” of the first true artificial mind, named Erdoch.
2200— Doriru II is developed to begin mining of the Kuiper Belt and surrounding celestial bodies. Suijin Station on Pluto’s moon Charon is developed.
2228— The Horus V Antimatter rocket is developed. This rocket has the potential to shorten space travel time even more, capable of traveling 76 million mph, but access is heavily restricted, mostly to military cruisers.

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These are ideas for things that go on within the solar system that your character could be involved in. You don't have to use any of these, but they're just ideas to give you context for the universe and potential things to inform your characters.

Plot Hooks

Alien Life: Sentient aliens don’t exist in the Earthshine universe (at least, not yet), but that doesn’t mean that there isn’t alien life. Many places in the solar system boast the capability to sustain simple life, from the soils of mars to the subterranean oceans of Europa, and many scientists have explored these places among others to find life outside of Earth.

Body Modification: In an age where robotics is cheap and genetic engineering is advanced, body modification has become fairly common amongst humans. Germline modification has led to the birth of genetically-modified babies with everything from disease resistance to night vision and superhuman strength. Meanwhile, people who lose limbs or develop degenerative diseases often end up with bionic limbs or body parts that can in many ways outcompete the original organic material. Some of these methods are highly ethically-challenged, but in a Solar System with rogue asteroid states and tons of distance separating nefarious deeds from governments wanting to stop them, enforcement of ethics is difficult to say in the least.

Conservation: In the wake of The Great Melt, many colonies were founded in the Solar System for the purpose of wildlife rehabilitation. These colonies are especially prevalent on the Moon and Mars, and often are controlled and funded by large, stable nations. Despite this, poaching and other threats to conservation of biodiversity exist, and a conservationist has to be part scientist, part ranger.

Homesteading: Sometimes, the pressures and tribulations of city life just doesn’t do it for a space explorer. Some people want to live on their own, working from the sweat of their brow and settling down far from civilization. These homesteaders are uncommon in the solar system, but can be found, often living on Mars, where they run small mineral mines or farm perchlorate-resistant crops. Living on the edge of society can be dangerous and difficult, but for many folk farming potatoes on Mars is just as rewarding as flying a spaceship around an asteroid field.

Instability: The cheapening of space travel had the unfortunate side effect of making it much easier for anyone with enough money to go and make their own country, primarily in the form of Asteroid States. These asteroid states are infamously unstable, waffling from religious cults to authoritarian regimes, and conflict is rife both in and between them. Many people find themselves as mercenaries or diplomats for these asteroid states, caught in the crossfire of people rich enough to buy a spaceship but unfit to rule a nation.

Organized Crime: Drug trafficking flourishes in this age of space exploration, run often by large dark corporations or governments such as the government of the asteroid state Bacchus. Some of the swiftest pilots in the Solar System make their money running drugs from place to place, and some others act as agents of various federal governments, trying to intercept drug runners before they enter federal space. The families who run these crime syndicates can be incredibly influential and powerful, especially over small colonies.

Piracy: In an age where shipping large amounts of expensive materials across open space is necessary to keep space colonies thriving, pirates thrive. Pirate gangs often hang out in the asteroid belt or between the gaps in planets, ambushing cargo ships and stealing their wares. Because of this, many large nations employ escort ships designed to deter pirates, leading to tense space battles.

Prospecting: There is a lot of stuff in space, and finding where usable resources are is an important job to keep human civilization running. This is where prospectors come in. Prospectors are explorers tasked with identifying asteroids and other space material that could be mined for human consumption. Often, prospecting takes people to the furthest reaches of space, from the far side of the asteroid belt to the Oort cloud out past Pluto. The job can be difficult and isolating, but it pays very well.

Shipping: Hundreds of thousands of pilots are employed in the field of space shipping, driving large cargo ships to colonies to deliver vital resources such as water, food, oxygen, and raw materials. Space trucking can be one of the best ways to see the Solar System.

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The Earthshine system isn’t just going to be built by me, but by the players as they flesh out locations around the Solar System. As more locations are fleshed out, this section will expand.

Locations

Amphitrite: The oldest city off of Earth, Amphirite is sprawling and antique. The buildings here are old, renovated to match the original 2000s style. The place is incredibly bright, with buildings covered in enamel facades with black windows. Amphirite essentially operates as a city-state overseen by the EU, but is mostly independent, with its own laws, citizenship, and government. A lot of universities are based in Amphitrite, and it is a big center for biomedical research.

Bacchus: One of the safer asteroid states, Bacchus is a land of vices and pleasure, Las Vegas times a hundred thousand. There are casinos, sure, but there are also hyper-realistic VR chambers, drug clubs overflowing with cocaine and ecstacy, brothels with robotic lovers so good you’ll never be satisfied with humans again and so realistic you wouldn’t know the difference. Their motto is literally “Vinum et Mulieres”, “Wine and Women.” Bacchus is also, unsurprisingly, the center of the Solar System drug trade.

Harmonia: Harmonia is the capital of the Martian Federation and the largest city off of Earth, with a population of around 30 million people. In addition to having such a large population, Harmonia is a center for technology and industrial production. Most of the computers in the Solar System are made in Harmonia. Harmonia feels very industrial, with buildings composed of Martian concrete, which is a dull greyish-red color.

Houyi: The smallest Lunar city, Houyi is a beautiful place that attracts many tourists. It is incredibly colorful and vibrant, contrasting with the often futuristic and esoteric design of space colonies, and is also a major center for industry. Most of the aluminum and titanium mined on the moon is processed in Houyi, and many electronic components are built there.

New Kyoto: On the dwarf planet Ceres in the asteroid belt, New Kyoto is the center for asteroid mining. It has a very cyber-punk vibe, with lots of concrete, steel, and neon lights. The headquarters of the Doriru Project, almost all of the platinum mined in the asteroid belt is processed in New Kyoto, making the place incredibly important since human society basically runs on platinum.

Sakhrat-Allah: Founded by the United Arab Emirates on Jupiter’s moon Europa, Sakhrat-Allah is a beautiful and rich city with stunning architecture and a distinctly Arabian feel. Many of the richest people in the Solar System live in Sakhrat-Allah, and much of the Solar System’s banking is run out of this place. As such, it also has just about the strongest security of any off-Earth colony, and crime is punished brutally. As Europa contains alien life, a lot of research is also done on Sakhrat-Allah, funded by the multi-billionaires who live there.

Suijin: All the way out of Pluto’s moon Charon, Suijin Station is the center of the newly-developing Doriru II project, designed to harvest useful resources from the Kuiper Belt. Suijin is very small, with only a couple hundred regular inhabitants. Most of the city is run by autonomous machines, mostly mining and utility drones. Suijin is cold and grey, with an aesthetic reminiscent of an Antarctic research base.

Yemoja: Yemoja is the largest of the Lunar cities, with a population of over 10 million people. Founded over a century ago by the Pan-African Nations, Yemoja is a highly-profitable and beloved spaceport and drydock, where many commercial spaceships are built. Built up after precious metals were made more abundant by the Doriru Project, Yemoja’s skyline is literally covered in gold. It is a bustling place, with people passing through constantly on their way to or from Earth.

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Most technology in Earthshine is based on current advancements in the fields of materials science, physics, and biology as of 2021 so as to make it somewhat more realistic. Thanks to the mining of asteroids, many materials that are advantageous to technology, such as Platinum, Lanthanum, Neodymium, Plutonium, Xenon, and Osmium are in very high supply, and this has made developing technology beyond our wildest dreams much more attainable. Advancements in carbon fiber development have made even more crazy technology available. Now, I’m not expecting anyone here to have an in-depth understanding of quantum computing or inorganic chemistry, but having a little bit of understanding of science will be very helpful to make this world more realistic, and can definitely help to inform your own ideas for technologies and characters.

Technology

Biology has come a long way in two centuries, especially the sciences of genetics and medicine. Thanks to advanced computing techniques, most of the genes in most relevant organisms have been categorized and understood, meaning that genetic manipulation is much easier to control. Thanks to this, many genetic illnesses like Parkinsons and Sickle Cell Anemia have been entirely wiped out. Additionally, advanced understanding of genetics has led to the development of the gene chip, a computer chip that contains all relevant information about a person’s genetics, making it much easier for doctors to prescribe medications that will work well with an individual person’s health.
Through developmental biology and materials sciences, most hospitals in the Solar System now contain cloning wings, where scientists construct artificial organs and body structures to replace damaged ones. Where nowadays getting a transplant can take months or years, now a new organ can be obtained within a few days, and patients no longer need to worry about organ rejection. Advancements in robotics have also made minimally-invasive surgeries common and easy, reducing recovery times for patients. Invasive surgeries still exist for extreme injuries, but are much less common.
Diseases still exist in the Solar System, especially in asteroid colonies and other places far from hospitals. Antibiotics are almost never used now, as the bacteria that prey on humans resist all of them. Nowadays, most medicines used to cure bacterial diseases use genetic engineering to render bacteria sterile or make them right-out die. Certain fungal diseases also prosper in space, especially ones resistant to radiation and that can grow at the low temperatures present in human settlements. Usually, though, these illnesses can be cured, and people seldom die of diseases.
A big problem in space is radiation. Without the Earth’s atmosphere, many space colonists find themselves exposed to deadly radiation doses all the time. Some colonists deal with this by taking pills that contain anti-radiation compounds, while others have been genetically-modified to have resistance to radiation. Cancer is still common in the human race, but many cheap and powerful therapies exist, meaning that much less people die of it if they are diagnosed properly. In most cultures in space, screening oneself for cancers is as common and accepted as washing your hands. This, combined with many other factors, has reduced human aging. A fifty-year-old in 2230 is about as healthy as a thirty-year-old in 2021 is, and people regularly live to the age of a hundred and forty.
On the other hand, advances in biology have led to some less-savory outcomes in the form of genetic modification of humans and animals. Many animals such as cows and chickens have been modified to produce more meat, leading to the “box cow” phenomenon, though eating meat is actually pretty rare in space since animals are so much work. Human genetic modification has been used both to cure diseases and to create what can only be referred to as chimeras, humans with genetic modifications from other animals. Most large states ban this sort of modding, but it is still popular in some societies, where people modify themselves for aesthetic or utilitarian purposes. Soldiers of an asteroid state may have increased muscle mass or more durable skin and tendons. Some have modifications to their eyes that allow them advanced night vision or distance judging. There is also a subculture of folk who will use genetic modification to create bizarre aesthetic appearances, such as modding their eyes to change shape or their skin to produce scales instead of hair. This is morally-grey at best and is usually looked down upon.
Biology has also revolutionized food production. Vertical farming and bacterial genetic modification allows for lots of food to be made in a very small area. In the Outer Colonies (a term used for colonies farther from Earth than Ceres, excluding Sakhrat-Allah), cyanobacteria are a major food source, while lab-grown meat and gmod plants are used closer to Earth to provide protein in diets. Seaweed is also a major food source now, as it can be grown easily in small spaces, as are insects.



Computers of the future are vastly different from computers of today. The cracking of quantum computing and the advanced materials of the asteroid mining age has led to breakthroughs in tech that make computers faster and more powerful. With the speed of quantum computing and new materials, terabytes of data can be transferred in the blink of an eye, and massive calculations can be performed that make AI much more effective. Technologies like voice recognition and image recognition are effectively solved. AI can also perform much more complex tasks requiring thought and creative thinking, though humans still perform many high-paying jobs. Jobs such as manufacturing, construction, mining, and agriculture are performed almost exclusively robotically, with a single mine or factory requiring only one or two on-staff humans. Meanwhile, architects, businessmen, chefs, doctors, engineers, lawyers, pilots, researchers, and many other kinds of workers have much of their job done for them by machines and computers which they supervise. Things are even crazier on Earth, where driving and shipping are entirely autonomous and it’s actually illegal to drive a car on a road manually.
Computer modeling has been drastically improved as well. With the invention of extremely powerful computers came the ability to model humans really well, so that virtual spaces can be used to mimic real spaces. Computers can model how human demographics will react to a product, how human emotions will change in response to a stimulus, how drugs will affect a certain organism, and how humans will interact with 3D objects, allowing for improved safety of architecture.
The speed of computers combined with the advanced modeling has also made a breakthrough humanity has been waiting for since before our current time— personality. Human brains can now be modeled in such a way that they can create a person with emotions, memories, and free thoughts. The first of these was Erdoch, an AI built by a Martian company in the year 2200. Erdoch did not live very long due to a technical glitch, but while alive it was essentially a person, capable of feeling emotions and creating new ideas. This has, perhaps unfortunately, been run with by many people, and has made entirely AI people exist around the Solar System, though they are very rare. Making a realistic human body has been possible since the 2060s at least, and this means that artificial humans can be made by those with the proper resources. This has been used in everything from warfare to psychology to prostitution. Sentient AI can also be put into computers, however, and can be made to run spaceships or do other human jobs. At the current time, though, sentient AI is so expensive to make that humans are still needed for many tasks.
In robotics, materials science and engineering combined with advanced computer programming has led to incredibly sophisticated robots, capable of doing all sorts of autonomous tasks. Battery technology is such that robots can hold a charge for weeks or months without producing their own power. Self-sufficient robots capable of repairing damage and responding to new environments made space mining possible. Construction, search and rescue, prospecting, drilling, surgery, mechanics, and many other jobs are performed by robots capable of performing tasks and noticing issues that humans never would. Robotic soldiers outnumber human soldiers 100 to 1, taking all sorts of shapes.
Prosthetics have come a long way too. Due to brain-computer interfaces, humans can now use the internet with their brains, see images in their visual feed, and perform all of the functions of a smartphone in their mind. Prosthetic limbs are common in the Solar System, and are better than biological limbs in basically every way, even being able to use metabolic energy as power. Cyborgs live normally and comfortably amongst humans, though some conservative humans are prejudiced against them. Humans of 2230 think of cyborgs the way we think of gay or transgender people, just as another possible form of human.



From the days of rockets and shuttles, spaceflight has become something almost unrecognizable from its original form. While nowadays we construct ships on Earth, where air resistance and drag are important to consider, spaceships of 2230 are built in space, allowing them to be much more advanced and operate totally differently. In space, there’s no air resistance or drag, so aerodynamics isn’t a factor when considering ship design. All of the power that a space cruiser can muster has to come from its thrusters or from a source of power available in space such as sunlight. Generally, the former is more accepted, as space travel engines can be made very efficient. Some ships still use chemical engines, but these are normally landers and shuttles that need to travel planetside to pick up supplies or the like.
Generally, when you’re considering space travel, there are three kinds of engines you can use: ion thrusters, photonic propulsion, and antimatter propulsion. The physics that makes these work are nuts, so I’m gonna simplify and you can look it up yourself if you want more.
Ion thrusters work by firing a stream of xenon gas and electrifying it, causing it to repel a magnet and pushing the ship forwards. This technology already exists in 2021, and is used to power satellites and other small objects in Earth’s orbit, but in the future they become much more efficient and can be used to thrust large craft. Ion thrusters are generally used by small, nimble ships such as fighters, satellites, or yachts. It’s possible to travel long distances with them, but it takes forever, as the top speed of an ion thruster is about 220,000 mph and space is big. For a while, though, this was humanity’s only option, and traveling between Earth and Mars took about four months. Ion thrusters are commonly used also as weapons in the form of ion cannons, which concentrate the xenon and superheat it into a plasma, blasting and burning whatever it hits. Ion thrusters and cannons do not work on planets, as the other ions in air cause them to fail.
Photonic propulsion is faster than ion thrusting but is more energy-intensive, requiring tons of electrical power. This works by firing a super-powerful laser into a solar sail, a light, thin, and flexible material that can absorb the momentum from light and convert it into thrust. This used to be used a lot in space travel, as it can get you from Earth to Mars in only 4 days at a speed of 670,000 mph, but nowadays it is so costly and cumbersome that it is almost never used. Laser grids do get used as weapons, though.
Finally, antimatter propulsion is the fastest and most efficient way to travel through space. This works by essentially making a huge explosion to thrust a ship forwards. When matter and antimatter collide, they explode and release a shitload of energy, and through advanced materials science this has been harnessed to be used for thrust. Antimatter propulsion is extremely fast, with the average ship moving at 4.5 million mph and the top-of-the-line military cruisers moving at up to 70 million mph, blowing the other two forms out of the water. Antimatter propulsion is crazy expensive, though, so it’s used for large cruisers and cargo ships. Antimatter thrusters do not work planetside, and even trying to use one planetside would cause an explosion that would likely destroy whatever planet you’re on.
Basically every ship out there has a nuclear reactor onboard that makes the power needed for thrust, though many ships also employ solar panels to power other things on the ship and take the burden off the reactor. Most ships have advanced auto-pilots that can run most onboard processes, as well as maintenance bots that can make repairs, so not a lot of people are needed to run a space cruiser when compared to, say, a modern-day naval ship. Cargo crews are usually only two or three people, while military ships can be a few dozen.



Guns, guns, guns. Is there anything humans like more than blowing shit up or killing each other? Apparently not, because from 2021 to 2230 humans have improved the art of blowing each other to smithereens like it’s their only job. The gun is an efficient and deadly weapon, but humans have made tons of improvements upon it, making more deadly weapons using more advanced technology. Some of these weapons are in their prototype stages today, such as railguns, but others came about only as a result of centuries of work into the art of making each other miserable.
Most weapons of the future require massive amounts of electricity and as such require supercharged lanthanum batteries. You can think of these like a second ammo source that needs to be reloaded less-frequently. When it comes to projectile weapons, future soldiers have two primary options: railguns and laser weapons. Railguns work by using magnetic coils to accelerate an object to terminal velocity. The projectile hits with an incredible amount of force, exploding in the process. A laser weapon, meanwhile, concentrates a super-powerful beam of light until it can burn through basically anything you point it at. Railguns have better range, while laser weapons tend to be more accurate but lose power the longer they’re fired. Laser weapons also heat up more rapidly than a railgun, meaning they can overheat if fire is sustained. Due to a variety of advances, both weapons tend to come at about the same size as current guns and are just as lightweight. Traditional firearms are still occasionally used in combat, but only in cases when a railgun or laser weapon is too destructive.
Other weapons exist as well. EMP grenades can disable enemy electronics, while microwave weapons use a satellite dish to concentrate microwaves on a target, causing them pain without killing them. Have an enemy hiding behind cover? Use a handheld guided missile. Have an enemy in close proximity? Use a lanth-TASER, a suped-up taser with enough electrical energy to kill someone on contact. Want to blow someone up for cheap? Use a battery-powered grenade that superheats a lanthanum battery and creates an explosion twice as big as a modern-day fragmentation grenade and four times as hot.
But why shoot people with a gun when you can kill them with your bare hands? Advances in robotics have led to exoskeletons being lightweight and highly-efficient, making a soldier much stronger than they would be alone. 2230 exoskeletons can be worn under clothing and are cheap to make, nearly quintupling the strength of their wearer when used correctly. With armored gloves and a powered exoskeleton, a soldier can punch holes in brick walls, lift trucks, and beat opponents to a pulp without needing a gun at all. When connected to armor, a soldier with an exoskeleton becomes a force to be reckoned with.
When it comes to armor, there are a few options. Your general armor is composed of hyperlite plastic, a lightweight plastic based on starlite that is shock resistant and heat-resistant, as well as several other materials like graphene, carbon fiber, and aerogel. While a railgun would turn even the most advanced modern-day armor into shrapnel, starlite-graphene-aerogel armor can take the hit about as well as a plate carrier can take a modern-day rifle round. In a pinch, hyperlite can withstand temperatures of up to 10,000 degrees Celsius. For lighter armor, Non-Newtonian Fabric (NNF) can be used, a material that becomes harder when hit by a projectile. These materials are light enough to be used for a pilot’s jumpsuit or a politician’s shirt, and can provide about as much protection as a plate carrier. A direct hit from a railgun will still turn the target into goo, but they can withstand near-misses and hits from normal bullets very well.
In space, ion cannons get used, weapons that propel a stream of electrically-charged xenon concentrated into a beam. Railguns and lasers also get usage, as well as missiles of all kinds. Since there’s no atmosphere in space, nuclear weapons have less of the stigma that they do on Earth, and they get used from time to time in space battles alongside other missiles.
Then there’s the grand-daddy of them all, the most powerful weapon ever devised by humans— the antimatter bomb. Antimatter bombs are nuts. By causing matter and antimatter to collide, they convert mass into energy (this is what E=mc^2 means by the way). To put this into perspective, the strongest nuclear bomb ever detonated, Tsar Bomba, had a blast force of 50 megatons of TNT and weighed 60,000 pounds. To replicate the same explosion with antimatter, you would need two and a half pounds. An antimatter bomb dropped on DC would turn the Mid-Atlantic United States into a bay. One dropped on London would make most of Western Europe disappear. An antimatter bomb wouldn’t just blow up a country— it would most likely end life on Earth. As such, the antimatter bomb is heavily-guarded, and they are not allowed within Earth’s orbit.

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Wild Times at the Earthshine Inn

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The Race for Space, Public Service Broadcasting

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"We meet in an hour of change and challenge, in a decade of hope and fear, in an age of both knowledge and ignorance. The greater our knowledge increases, the greater our ignorance unfolds..."

"The eyes of the world now look into space, to the moon and to the planets beyond, and we have vowed that we shall not see it governed by a hostile flag of conquest, but by a banner of freedom and peace. We have vowed that we shall not see space filled with weapons of mass destruction, but with instruments of knowledge and understanding..."

"We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win..."

"Many years ago, the great British explorer George Mallory, who was to die on Mount Everest, was asked why did he want to climb it. He said, "Because it is there"...

"Well, space is there, and we're going to climb it, and the moon and the planets are there, and new hopes for knowledge and peace are there. And, therefore, as we set sail we ask God's blessing on the most hazardous and dangerous and greatest adventure on which man has ever embarked. Thank you."

- John F. Kennedy, speaking at Rice University. September 12th, 1962.

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Welcome to Wild Times at the Earthshine Inn. This RP-thing takes place in the not-so-distant future of 2230, during the golden age of solar system exploration. Due to a variety of factors, from advanced technology developed via asteroid mining to the decline of Earth to climate change, humans now look towards the stars and planets not as things of wonder, but as real estate opportunities. Dozens upon dozens of human colonies now dot the solar system, from the moons of Jupiter to the distant icefields of the Oort Cloud.
Technology in this age is advanced, but not Star Trekkian. Faster-than-light travel has yet to be invented, but solutions to the problems caused by the distance of space have been provided. With your average rocket, a human spaceship can get from Earth to Mars in a little under a day, about 19 hours, while it takes about a month to get from Earth to Pluto. Light itself has to travel as well though, meaning that radio transmissions from Earth to Mars, for example, take about a half hour. This distance is just about perfect for off-Earth colonies to develop their own cultures while still being connected to the rest of humanity.
In this Rp-esque thing, you play a space explorer of some sort. Perhaps you are a trucker hauling payloads of important minerals or gasses around to different colonies, or a mercenary fighting to conquer or protect various colonies outside of Earth jurisdiction. Maybe you’re a pirate who attacks cargo ships to steal their precious metals or a junker who cleans up wreckage to recycle important electronics. The Solar System is a wide-open frontier with danger and adventure lurking all over. Unlike other RPs, however, your character isn’t acting in a singular plot, but instead has brought the story of their adventures in space to a small dive bar in a lunar city. Gather round the bar and grab a drink as you listen to the stories of fellow adventurers and tell your own tales of traveling across the Solar System in a land of unparalleled opportunity.
Below can be found a brief history of how humanity got to this moment in time, from the year 2021 to the current year, 2230. Much of recent history within this list has been left intentionally blank for you to fill in. Unlike usual, I’m taking a different approach to worldbuilding with this RP, allowing the players to construct the world around them as they see fit, so long as it fits within the thematic parameters. You can put a place already made into your own context, or you can create entirely new places anywhere in the Solar System.

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Genre: Hard Science Fiction
Availability: By Invitation only.
Pace: Slow, requiring interaction once every few days, with max being once a week.

So here's how this is going to work. Unlike most RPs, where everyone together writes one story, this RP will be more like an anthology, where every player will take turns writing a short story that is their character telling a story of their lives exploring space. The rp will be very slow-paced, and once it is your turn for your story, you have one week to post your story. We will then have some short posts of characters' reactions to your story before we go to the next one. We will go in a set order decided after the introduction to the rp. Depending on how well-liked the RP is, we may have multiple rounds, where characters can tell new stories or new characters can join.

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1) No OOC in the IC.

2) There is no minimum post size. Write what needs to be said and write it well.

3) All short stories must be put into a single post. If your story exceeds the max character limit, you may double post.

4) Usual shit. Don't be racist, homophobic, etc. Cursing is of course allowed, as is sex, drugs, and rock n' roll.

5) Stories do not have to be canonical. You are a bunch of half-drunk spacefolk sitting around a bar— you're probably gonna make shit up or exaggerate. That said, pay attention to what other writers write. We are building this universe together, so work together to make a cohesive setting if you can.

6) Once it is your turn to post your short story, you must post within the next 7 days. You may prepare the story in advance. If you do not post in 7 days, your character will be excused from the table and you will go to the end of the order.

Soldiers of Fortune

Iulian

D I E S I R A E

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Irae was hesitant to allow Bradshaw to be the one at the front driving the horses. For one, he was far too imposing a man, and he himself could probably play it up better than he could. Secondly, he was worried that taking the time to dramatically take off his cloak, reveal his armor, and draw his sword, they’d already be on guard and ready to slaughter him like a ripe pig. Nevermind the fact that hiding Irae back here was kind of a waste of resources, but of course, this was perhaps his own expertise talking and he was expecting too much from a small handful of roadside brigands. When their fearless leader gave the cue, the other two combatants hiding with him burst outside armed to the teeth with oversized weapons to bear down upon their enemies. Meanwhile, Irae stayed seated with his dagger in hand and center to his body, held up almost ritualistically, as he closed his eyes and prayed for a bloody end to his enemies.

Outside, the battle proceeded as expected. Compared to trained mercenaries, these bandits were no match. At the front of the cart, Adam faced off against the largest of the bandits, sword in hand against a boar spear. The spear, Adam knew, was a hunting tool, not a weapon, and despite its appearance, the crossguard beneath the spear point was a liability Adam could exploit. Held at a range, Adam feigned a lunge forwards, and the bandit took the bait. He thrust out with the spear towards Adam, who side-stepped and brought his sword up swiftly, catching the backside of the crossguard with the blade of his sword. The blade now secure, Adam pulled, bringing the bandit in close, then shoved the spear to the side with a quick thrust. The spearpoint pushed off to the side, Adam reached forwards with his off hand and grabbed the spear shaft, securely neutralizing the weapon. Before the bandit could react, Adam pulled the shaft and thrusted simultaneously, stabbing the bandit between a pair of ribs. The blade pierced through the back of the bandit’s torso, running him through.

The bandit struggled weakly, blood rushing from the wound. He grabbed at Adam’s forearm, attempting to remove the blade to no avail. Adam let go of the spear and put an arm around the bandit’s shoulders, pulling him close. At closer inspection, the bandit was a lot older than he initially looked; tufts of grey sprouted from his messy hair and beard, and wrinkle lines ringed his eyes. He was probably around Adam’s age. The bandit opened his mouth to say something, but only blood escaped. Slowly, Adam lowered him to the ground and withdrew the sword.

“Sorry, old man,” Adam said, looking down at the dying man. “May you rest in peace.” With that, Adam stood up, leaving the man to watch the swiftly blackening sky.

On the other side of the cart, Iulian and Amelia fought the other bandits. After her initial attack, the bandit was able to get back his footing and prepare to defend. She lunged forwards, trying to catch the spear with her parrying hooks, but the bandit backpedaled, the blade glancing off the tip of the spear.

Iulian was far more ravenous in his approach, wielding a khopesh and nothing else with surprising effectiveness. Unlike his quarry and the allies he fought with who grunted in exertion and effort or gasped in pain, Iulian cackled, his gravelly voice taking on an unnerving laugh as he powered forward. His chosen bandit was a young man, likely a decade his junior. The bandit’s approach had been energetic at first but he was worn down fast by Iulian’s seemingly endless barrage of heavy strikes. The bandit parried a downwards arc of Iulian’s sword and brought it upwards, glancing Iulian’s flank, but he overextended. Iulian’s hand came up and caught the boy’s forearm in an iron grip. Out of instinct he pulled backwards, but Iulian moved with him. The young man was off balance and panicked, and swung with his free hand in an attempt to punch the larger man to gain some breathing room, but Iulian was undeterred. He lunged forwards with ferocity unlike a normal man, and sunk his teeth into the boy’s neck. There was a seize, and a gurgle, and Iulian dropped the still living young man- roughly shoving his body to the ground. He had a chunk bitten out of the side, and blood was flowing freely from the bite. Iulian spat that chunk out and wiped his mouth with his forearm, electing to pay no further attention to the dying man, either unaware or uncaring of his injury. Saliva and drool strung from his mouth like a rabid dog, now tinted red with the blood from the bite.

Irae heard the wet gnashing of blood and flesh and teeth from behind the canvas and signed a cross over his body with his hand. It was very likely Iulian’s doing. That man always had a habit of playing with his food — a messy eater with such terrible table manners, and it was doubtful he even brought a napkin with him. He made a rueful sigh as he held his reliquary and called out from inside the wagon, “could we please expedite this?”

As if on cue, a blade ripped through the canvas beside his head and tore a two foot vertical slit in the wagon covering, to which Irae acknowledged with a surprised widening of his eyes, albeit nothing more. The sound of impact against the side of the wagon, conjoined with the mutual grunting of a man and woman, Irae assumed that Amelia pinned one against the side of the wagon. A quick peek through the new hole in the canvas confirmed this. With a tired rolling of his eyes, he broke form (that is, praying), and brandished his dagger and stuck it blindly through the canvas and into the torso of the bandit engaged with Amelia. One shrill yelp later, the weight on the wagon shifted as he heard the sound of a body crash against the ground, followed by a quick and bloody end on someone’s blade as he cleaned his own with a spare red handkerchief. This was just another day in life.
As the last ground bandit slumped to the road, leaving a bloody smear down the side of the canvas wagon, Amelia frowned and rolled her eyes. Before speaking, she lifted her blade and plunged it down into the chest of the bandit, confirming his death. Then she looked up at the cart, anger in her eyes.

“That was my kill!” Amelia shouted. “You’ve got no business flexing your weary priestly muscles.” Adam walked around the corner and brought the conversation to a halt.

“No time for small talk,” Adam said. “The archer and tower teams have moved. Let’s head to the base of the tower and try to get out the rest of the bandits. Adam looked around this side of the cart; the fights over here had been much bloodier. Furthermore, the canvas of the company’s troop cart had been torn and bloodstained— a costly repair. Adam groaned as he walked out towards the tower.

“And Iulian,” he called over his shoulder. “Wipe your goddamn mouth off, won’t you? We’re soldiers, not cannibals.”

Soldiers of Fortune

---

"Check with Emrys, but I'm pretty sure we have some climbing equipment you all can utilize," Adam said. "Perhaps Morag can set something up for you." With that, seeing that everyone seemed in agreement, Adam nodded and stood from the table.

"Alright," he said. "I believe that concludes today's meeting. As the plan, we will depart at dusk. Make sure you are ready on time- tardy soldiers don't get paid." With that, Adam left the tent and walked the perimeter of the camp, ensuring everything was running accordingly. He stopped by one of the company's carts, a canvas-covered wagon pulled by a large grey ox. The cart could hold ten people comfortably, the whole company, while the other cart held equipment and supplies. Adam surveyed the cart: the wheels properly-aligned, the canvas unripped, the harness in good shape. Adam pet the large grey ox, who nuzzled his hand and grumbled softly.

"You're worry-planning," Amelia said, approaching behind Adam. Adam sighed, realizing he'd been caught.

"Here we go," Adam grumbled, standing up and facing his daughter. "Alright, let me have it."

"You're nervous cause you know I'm gonna be on that cart and on this mission," Amelia said. She shrugged and crossed her arms.

"It's more than that, it's-" Amelia cut him off.

"Give it to someone else," she said. "You do this every time I fight." Adam put his hands on his hips.

"You know I'm just looking out for you," Adam said, bowing his head. "I'm supposed to, you know." Amelia put a hand on Adam's shoulder. Adam was always astonished by Amelia's strength: her grip on him was like a sailor's.

"We're gonna be okay," Amelia said, smiling. "I was trained by the best knight in the whole goddamn realm." Adam shook his head, unable to suppress his smile. "There we go!" Amelia said. "See? It'll be fine! We beat these anarchist dipshits to a bloody pulp and haul their corpses off for cash! Totally safe!" Adam laughed— nervous-making as she was, Amelia always knew how to diffuse tension. The two of them walked off back towards the camp, Amelia's arm on her old man's shoulder.

"And hey, if things get back," Amelia said. "I'll just have Iulian eat them. I'm sure he'd love some nice raw kidney of highwayman!" Adam couldn't help but laugh.

---

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The rest of the day's planning went off without a hitch. Climbing gear was obtained from the storage cart and given to Morag for modification. The teams assembled and prepared their equipment: Morag, Ceri, and Scrapbeak would be on the archer team, Senna and Rowan on the climbing team, Adam, Amelia, Irae, and Iulian on the cart team. Each soldier prepared their equipment for the day's combat: Adam polished and sharpened the blade of his partisan until it glittered in the midday sun. Amelia donned her armor and surcoat, and took out her mighty blade, a tremendous zweihander. The massive, two handed steel sword wasn't much shorter than Amelia was, the pommel nearly reaching her chin when the blade tip was placed against the ground. Such a massive weapon was not easy to use; it was heavy for a sword, ten pounds, and required an understanding of leverage and momentum to use. Amelia gripped the sword as she normally would, one hand on the handle and the second overhand in the space of dull steel between the crossguard and parrying hooks. She practiced a few maneuvers behind her tent; she quickly slashed across her body to the left, then jabbed forward, hurling the momentum of the massive sword to her advantage. Holding the sword this way made controlling it equal parts swordsmanship and polearm combat. She threw out several more attacks in the air: a thrust, quick parry to the left, catching an imaginary polearm blade on the parrying hook, then sliding down the shaft and slashing towards the neck. Satisfied, she stuck the blade into the ground and leaned both her arms on the crossbar. Adam always preached how mercenary combat was inglorious, but Amelia couldn't help but feel a tinge of heroism sometimes.

"Time to bring down the bad guys," she muttered to herself, walking off towards the cart.

---

Dusk

A single cart traveled down a dusty cobblestone road. The wheels grumbled and bumped, throwing clods of dirt into the air as the beast of burden, a broad-chested grey ox, labored in the falling sun. At the head of the vehicle sat a hunched-over driver clad in brown traveler's robes, a tattered hood pulled low over his eyes. A scruffy beard stuck out from a lowered chin. The ox snorted and shook its head to bat off flies. In the distance, three men approached across a wide field of yellow grass.

The first man arrived at the road and stepped in the path of the cart. He was tall and broad-shouldered, with a messy auburn beard and a grey hood pulled over his head. He wore a padded tunic and thick leather gauntlets, and he carried a boar spear in two hands. The other men, smaller but similar-dressed and wielding similar weaponry, stood by the side of the cart.

"C-can I help you?" the voice of the cart-driver said.

"Evenin', ol chap," the large bandit said. "What're ye haulin at this time er day?"

"J...just supplies on their way to Jikari," the cart-driver said. "Mining tools and such. Nothing that would interest you young lads."

"Well, it do interest us," one of the men beside the cart said. The larger bandit held up a hand to stop him and barked "quiet!"

"As that 'ere smaller man said, it do interest us what yer haulin' and where. Ye see, this 'ere is our road. We own it, ya know. An' we can't 'ave ye comin' down it witout payin' the toll, else we'd lose our ownership."

"Oh, my apologies," the driver said. "I d-d-didn't know." One of the other bandits, the one who'd spoken up before, stepped towards the driver's chair and brandished his spear. The driver leaned back in surprise.

"'issl be easy than I could've dreamt," the large bandit said. The others laughed menacingly. "Alwroight, we'll be takin' all the gold on ye and 'alf yer load. Right quick, come on. Don't want ter 'ave ter spill peasant blood on me road, now do I?"

"Oh, please sir," the driver held up his hands in fright. Behind the hands, Adam was grinning like a mischievous little boy. "I've got to feed my family!"

"Well, so do we," the smaller bandit said. "So cough it up before I slice open yer windpipe and pull it out with me bare 'ands."

"I don't think that'll be necessary," a voice came from inside of the cart. The movements quickened. The driver dove out of the seat onto the ground, his cast-off brown cloak fluttering in the wind. From inside the covered wagon, Amelia lunged in full battle regalia, Iulian behind her, both brandishing their weapons. Amelia caught the boar-spear with the parrying hook of her blade midair and shoved it to the side briskly, then went in for a lunge. The bandit caught the sword in a static block with his spear shaft. The blade dug into the wood. Amelia twisted the sword and ripped out a chunk of wood, then went in for another lunge. Adam was on his feet, sword drawn and in hand. He faced the large bandit at the front.

"Well, that's half my cargo," he said. "Guess I'll pay the rest in blood." Adam ran forward and thrust his sword. The bandit caught it on the crossbar of the boar spear. The battle commenced, the archery team moved into action; they would fire upon the tower and take out the crossbowmen, then the climbing team would head out across the field and scale the side. Everything was going according to plan.

Blue Skies and Battle

Soldiers of Fortune

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Adam sat back as the company each voiced their opinions. Irae, as usual, had the same strategy Adam had in mind; picking off the bandits from the cover of the woods would nullify the bandits' height advantage, though battlements would provide them some cover. The pincer technique, too, would be effective at driving out the bandits if they attempted to retreat, or at least they could drive the captain to surrender. Dusk would place the sun behind the trees, which could hopefully disguise their incursion. Adam frowned at Iulian's suggestion— Iulian had worked on and off for the Pride for years, but his plans always involved personal risk. Sometimes, it felt like Iulian was trying to get hurt. He looked between the company members, wondering where to start.

"Considering this is Nepharie land, I'd imagine the intelligent is accurate," Adam replied to Morag. "And we'll be paid enough for 500 monas each. I think that's sufficient given the risk involved." He turned to the rest of the party;

"We're not using you as bait Iulian," Adam said. "Last thing we need is to lose a soldier in a fight that should be a cakewalk. I think the rest of us are on a good track; attacking from tree cover with the sun behind us will decrease the accuracy of return fire. While I'm not keen on "bait", per say, we'll first need a way to draw the foot soldiers away, else they'll go inside and lock themselves in." Amelia looked up from her frowning stupor, though her face remained glum.

"They're looking for merchant caravans, right?" Amelia said. "Just use one of the carts and put soldiers in the back. We can draw their attention over and when they try to rob us, our archers pick off theirs." Adam nodded and thought for a moment.

"That's sensible," he said. "What do the rest of you think?"

Soldiers of Fortune

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Chapter 0: Prologue

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Plenmos 21, 5061

It is a cool, windy day in southeastern Nepharie. An eastward wind blows across the soft, gently-rolling plains, rustling the leaves of the sycamore trees and turning the long golden grass into a stormy sea. A roaring gust catches the sloped wall of a canvas tent, rattling the structure. Within the tent, Captain Adam Bradshaw awakens. He groans, his back sore from sleeping in a bedroll on the hard ground, his short black hair and beard a wild mess. Slowly, he rolls to his hands and knees, rises up, and opens the weighted flaps of the tent. It is dawn, and orange light is pouring over the horizon like a flood. Adam blinks in the sunlight and listens to the quiet of the morning: wind rushing across wide grasslands. In the distance, a mourning dove coos from a tree. Swallows excitedly flit across the empty sky, swift as darts as they cut swirling patterns through the air. Adam sighs. Now, the day is beautiful, but later, he knows, it will be soaked with blood.

Slowly, the camp comes to life, folks awakening and preparing for the day. Adam retreats into his tent and dresses; he pulls on a padded, long-sleeved tunic and a pair of trousers, then dons the same hauberk of chain mail he has worn for ten years. It weighs heavy on his shoulders, but it brings him comfort, like a weighted blanket. He pulls on armored greaves and laces them, fastens the leather straps of his pauldrons across his chest. He pulls on rerebraces, fitted to his bicep musculature but in need of adjusting with leather cords, then couters, and finally plated gauntlets. As his fingers slide into the chain mail gloves covered with plate, he makes his hand into a fist. Nothing grants the feeling of invulnerability more than a fist of metal.

With that, Adam runs through his hair and beard with a fine-toothed comb and brushes his teeth with a frayed stick and crushed cloves. Prepared for the day, he steps out into a camp brimming with activity. Emrys, the quartermaster, sits around a cauldron of beans over the fire, ladling out bowls-full to each mercenary. As Adam walks towards the meeting-tent, wide and high-ceilinged, with a large wooden table and chairs within, he salutes to his fellow soldiers wordlessly. He takes a bowl of beans and a spoon from Emrys with a smile and sits down at the head of the table. Slowly, the other soldiers file in one by one, and the day's tactics meeting beings.

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"A band of highwaymen have recently wrought a reign of terror down upon the main road between Nepharie and Jikari, disrupting trade between the two nations and causing panic in the local villagers. Bloated by their success, the bandits invaded a local guard tower, killing the men responsible for defending the road and assuming it as their base. The Imperial Governor requires your immediate assistance in bringing these bandits to justice— dead or alive.

Battle Planning

Captain Bradshaw glowered down at a map setting upon a wooden table in the center of the Iron Pride's meeting tent. He sat at the head of the table, head resting upon his right fist. By now, the rest of the company had arrived for the morning's meeting and was finishing up their breakfast. Across the table from Adam, on the opposite end, sat Amelia, who sipped from a wineskin to wash down her breakfast. Amelia was not a planner— she seldom found anything to contribute in meetings such as these, and from time to time wished she could spend the morning sleeping or training instead of staring at a map. Yet, here she was, frowning over a half-eaten bowl of beans and blinking the sleep from her eyes. She didn't know how her father did mornings.

After a few moments of silence, Adam spoke up:

"Hope you've all had a good morning," He said. "As you've all been briefed previously, we're being called today to retake a watchtower guarding the trade route between Nepharie and Jikari. It's been taken by a gang of highwaymen, your usual bandit punkery, and is now being used as a base of operations. Considering the gravity of their crimes, the Nepharie government has branded these folk extra legem, so feel free to kill if you have to. Scouts from the local governor have provided us a map of the local area." Adam gestured towards the map in the center of the table with an open, metal-covered hand.

"Each square upon the map is roughly fifty feet," Adam continued. "From our reconnaissance, we've identified eight external guardsmen, though we know there's a ninth, a captain, within the tower. Normally, four of those men travel down to the road to ambush carts, but the governor has instituted roadblocks up and downstream of the area to prevent collateral damage to merchants or citizens. The four men atop the tower have crossbows, most likely taken from the stock within the watchtower, while the four at the bottom have three boar-spears and one hatchet. These are not exactly knights of the realm we're up against." Amelia snorted from the other side of the table. Adam couldn't help but smile slightly.

"Now, as usual, we like our tactics planning to be a collaborative effort, so let's get some input here." Adam said, leaning back in his chair.

Soldiers of Fortune

Amelia Bradshaw

Age: 17

Race: Human

Gender/Pronouns: She/her

Appearance: 5’5”, 130 lbs. Amelia is of average height and weight for a woman her age. She’s fit from a life on the road, with a somewhat masculine-yet-small build. She’s got a fairly athletic and boyish stance, feet shoulder length apart, shoulders thrown back, a broad chest for her size. She’s fairly pale and sunburns easily, much to her chagrin. She has freckles, especially along the brim of her nose and cheeks. She has a serious face with a prominent brow and small round ears that protrude from her mess of brown hair. She has a small, mousey nose and dark blue eyes. Her voice is fairly deep for a woman, and she speaks with a slight British accent (a remnant of her Talbor heritage).

Attire: Amelia dresses cheaply and plainly. She wears a simple brown tunic, trousers, and mid-calf height brown leather boots. She has a brown leather belt around her waist with a bollock knife on it, mostly a tool for cutting meat/cheese/rope, etc, but potentially also a weapon. When it’s cold, she wears a black hooded cloak made of bear fur, a gift from her father.

On the battlefield, Amelia wears half-plate armor: pauldrons, rerebraces, vambraces, gauntlets, armored greaves, poleyns, and a knee-length mail shirt. She wears a grey and black surcoat over her armor. She wears a close helm with a visor atop her head.

Outward Personality: In a word, Amelia’s a bastard. Growing up on the road surrounded by brigands and pirates, she’s developed a tough, rowdy exterior and a brash, aggressive disposition. She curses like it’s her job, drinks like a fish, and generally acts vulgar and irreverently. As a woman in the company of men, Amelia has spent much of her life having to prove she’s just as good as everyone else, and it’s left a serious chip on her shoulder. She has a quick temper, a head harder than steel, and a short leash for insults, especially when it comes to her gender, strength, or prowess on the battlefield. Amelia is someone who thinks actions speak louder than words, with little tolerance for bullshit. The words of nobles and politicians are designed to confound and confuse— bluntness is truth. At her core, Amelia is extremely emotionally-repressed. Her entire life, she’s been taunted for her femininity in the company of men, and such has made her afraid to ever really open up to anyone. In truth, Amelia is as exhausted as she is angry: why does she have to suffer because of a malicious culture outside of her control? Why can’t people accept enough is enough and let her prove herself for who she is?

While Amelia acts like a bastard, she’s by no means a bad person. She has a lot of emotional intelligence and an understanding of people’s limits— she’ll make fun of you for everything she can find, but if she can tell it’s starting to bother you she’ll cut the crap. Amelia has a strong moral compass as well: she despises bullies and malicious folk, and if you find yourself at the blade or fist of a villain she’ll be the first to your side. She loves fighting: while she’s smart enough to not pick fights, she’ll be the first to join them once they start.

Amelia is a lesbian, unable to muster up any attraction to men. On several occasions, she’s been caught flirting with tavern wenches or stable maids, which she’s gotten in various degrees of trouble for. The stigma in some parts of the world against lesbian relationships doesn’t particularly bother Amelia— everyone already discounts and despises her for her gender— why stop there? While she’s flirted with girls a few times, and occasionally stolen a kiss, but she’s never had a long-term relationship.

Goal: Amelia’s goal in life is to prove herself as a great warrior. She’d like to lead her own mercenary company someday, maybe take over the Iron Pride after Adam retires. Knightly roles don’t really interest her much— the pomp and circumstance of noble courts is like vomit in Amelia’s mouth.

Character Flaws: Amelia comes at life with a point of view that everyone she meets is going to discount and doubt her. As such, she has a lot of trouble trusting people, assuming that they will always treat her with the same distaste she’s used to. Furthermore, Amelia has a really short temper and is uncommonly stubborn, a mix that can get violent fast in the wrong context. Determination is one thing— bone-headedness is another entirely.

Backstory: Amelia was born in Talbor, but she doesn’t talk about or remember that part of her life that much. She had an education of some sort, was born in relative privilege, but left at a young age with her father. The circumstances of the Bradshaws leaving Talbor is not a topic Amelia likes to discuss or think of.
From then on, Amelia grew up on the road, traveling the land with her father as he tried to find a better life for them. Amelia idolized her father; he was everything that a knight was supposed to be: courageous, tough, but also kind and chivalrous. He treated Amelia like a queen, always making sure she had enough when times were tough, giving up his own meals or blankets or bedding so she could be comfortable. In exchange, Amelia worked hard to be the perfect child and to live up to her father’s expectations. When Adam went out on missions, Amelia would do exactly as she was told and resented mischief. To keep her safe, Adam taught Amelia basic knifework, just in case. Amelia practiced constantly; she loved being able to defend herself, knowing that it would give her father relief to know she was safe when he did what he had to do to put food on the table.
In those days, the Iron Pride was mostly composed of warriors from Talbor, old contacts of her father’s who had lost their noble titles or deserted, but those days changed. One by one, those men left, killed in battle or gone back to Talbor to fight in the war for this side or that. The men that came to replace them weren’t the same: they saw Amelia as a distraction, not as a person. A child had no place in a mercenary camp, they thought. Amelia was teased and mocked and humiliated for reasons outside of her own control. Several times the teasing got so bad that Adam stepped in, once even beating up a mercenary who had literally attempted to steal Amelia’s underwear from her hamper. For reasons outside of her control, Amelia was a target, and day by day it grated on her.

From the age of ten, Amelia was trained in combat, archery at first but then horsemanship and melee combat. Adam wanted her to be a hunter, if anything. Amelia wanted to be a soldier. She trained every day, rain or snow or blazing heat, with the polearm, axe, and sword, sparring with other mercenaries or Adam when she could. She was so proud to show her father what she’d learned from reading dueling manuals or from watching the moves of the other mercenaries. Amelia’s fighting style diverged from Adam’s pretty quickly; Adam was a knight, trained in honorable combat. Amelia saw no honor in war. She would kick, spit, throw sand, swing for the nether regions with blunted weapons. Once, while sparring an ostaran merc named Sionyn, known for harassing and belittling Amelia, she tackled him to the ground and beat his face in with the pommel of a training sword, breaking his nose and knocking out several teeth. Sionyn...left the company then under less-than-harmonious circumstances. Amelia’s catchphrase within combat became “fight me like a man!”, usually followed by a swift and definitive blow.

For a long time, Adam refused to allow Amelia to fight. He gave all sorts of answers: too impulsive, too young, too disobedient, but in his heart he knew the answer: she was his daughter, the only family he had left, and if anything happened to her, he’d be crushed. The argument went back and forth, Amelia feeling as if her father was treating her as all men did, as a weakling not meant for battle. All that changed a year ago, at what the members of the Iron Pride call The Battle of Cnoc Talamh.

The company was traveling through North Nepharie, guarding a royal carriage containing military implements bound for a fort in the Harvest Mountains. A rival mercenary gang was hired to intercept the shipment and, after careful espionage, ambushed the company while they were stopping to rest. A fight broke out between the two groups; Adam went out to face the enemy, ordering Amelia to stay hidden with one of the other mercs, who was instructed to defend her at all costs. The company was outnumbered; several members died, and Adam was wounded in a battle against two enemies. As one of those two ran to thrust his pike into Adam’s chest, he heard a scream from behind; Amelia had wrestled her way away from the merc ordered to guard her, grabbed the first weapon she saw, a massive zweihander, and ran to defend her father. In one fell stroke, the mercenary’s head toppled from his body. Amelia continued fighting by her father’s side and in the end they were able to repel the mercenaries, though at the cost of several members of their band and a Nepharie government official.

From that day on, there’s been a silent agreement between Adam and Amelia; so long as Amelia proves she is more than capable of defending herself and uses her head enough to keep out of stupid situations, Adam allows her to fight. The two still argue often over Adam’s tight leash on Amelia, but there’s a respect there that wasn’t there before, the kind of respect between a captain and soldier.

Skills:

Martial Training: Amelia has trained as a warrior since she could hold a sword. She’s a determined, skilled, and vicious warrior, trained in a combination of knight swordsmanship and mercenary scrappiness.

Horsemanship: Amelia knows how to ride a horse, though she’s no cavalier. Things such as charging in formation or fighting from horseback beyond basic moves are a bit too much for her. She also doesn’t have a horse.

Magic: None.

Weaponry:

Zweihander: Enormous and imposing, the zweihander is the king of all swords. Boasting a mammothly 40 inch blade, an extra-wide crossguard, ring guards, and parrying hooks before the hilt, the zweihander is designed for combatting polearms on the battlefield. The section of blade between the crossguard and parrying hooks isn’t sharpened, allowing it to be used as a secondary handle for increased leverage. The zweihander is a recent development in Tithe, used often by mercenaries in Nepharie. This is Amelia’s favorite weapon and she brings it into most battles.

Flanged Mace: The ultimate evolution of the club, the flanged mace is designed to bust up armor. Consisting of a spiked steel head on a relatively short wooden shaft, the mace is a close-range weapon designed to focus its considerable weight onto a single point, strong enough to dent plate armor and lower an enemy’s mobility. Amelia uses the mace as a sidearm against heavily-armored enemies.

Rondel: The rondel is a thick 12 inch dagger that tapers to a needle point. The blade itself is triangular and is designed exclusively for stabbing, with the heft necessary to pierce chain mail, though it is useless against plate armor.

Other:

Character Theme: Ambiramus by Eluveitie

Soldiers of Fortune

@Maxx i'll show you how gay i am when i fuck you in the ass

@Ghost Note

I didn't call you gay you dumb booty hoe