The New World Gives Us Hope
Our people have faced generations of religious persecution in the Old World. We are accused of being zealous and extreme, of trying to force our views on outsiders. We are continuously tempted towards sin; intentionally, maliciously. They whisper to our children, trying to turn each generation against us. To eliminate us, one by one, by making us like them.
The New World is a fresh start. Its open, empty land is clean and free of sin. There is no government, no outside church there to oppress us and sway us. Our people have established a settlement in the New World, a place called Elderford. Winters are harsh, food is scarce, forests are dark and looming and filled with creatures we do not understand. But, there we are free to follow our God as we choose.
But, There is Corruption in the Forest
A murderer stalk the streets of our young village. Witches dance in the trees at night, casting curses and madness upon the children of God. Monsters disguise themselves as our people and walk among us, spreading dissent. All is not well.
Far from the relative safety of laws and guards, we, the people of Elderford, must take it upon ourselves to root out the evil among us, and though they may wear our faces, we must have no mercy.
About
This roleplay is based heavily on the game Town of Salem and the Salem Witch Trials, and takes place in a fantasy setting roughly parallel to Puritanical New England. Thus, the people, aesthetics, and beliefs are based heavily on Puritanical Christianity, and follows these peoples' struggle as they attempt to flee religious persecution in the Old World and make a new life for themselves in the harsh, uncolonized New World. However, not everyone is here for the same reasons. Supernatural creatures stalk the town, whether for nefarious purposes or simply to try to survive; regardless, the superstitious citizens know that there is magic afoot, and seek to weed it out.
In this roleplay, you must claim one of the predetermined character spots based on Town of Salem character roles (though not identical to them), either as a simple human citizen of Elderford or as something more unnatural. For the most part, you'll have the freedom to make the character as you wish, just with a few parameters (age range, gender, a couple personality traits, etc.). Each character has a rough alignment (for example, regular humans are aligned with the village and thus want all supernaturals dead, while supernaturals may help each other or be out for themselves) and perhaps a more specific goal, but these can be swayed slightly through roleplay.
The Old World, New World, and Religion
The Old World is roughly analogous to colonial-era England. It is ruled by a King- currently, King Gideon III- who also has religious authority over the kingdom. The Divine Church emphasizes that nearly any sin may be forgiven with repentance and service to the Church (including donations). There are a few sects of the religion that follow different beliefs; however, people belonging to these sects are often somewhat ostracized by those of the dominant religion- known as Divined- for a number of reasons. The people who have come to Elderford are some such people.
Elderford was founded by people known as the Unfettered. The Unfettered believe that the Divine Church is corrupted by money and greed- which is certainly not untrue- and seek to purge themselves of earthly greed entirely. This includes nearly all forms of desire- greed, gluttony, envy, and lust first and foremost among them. They are taught to be humble, to never covet the station or belongings of others, to never over-indulge or revel (which includes dancing, drinking alcohol for recreation, sex for any reason besides procreation, singing anything besides prayers and hymns, indulging in needlessly fancy food, dressing extravagantly, etc. etc. except on very rare occasions, mainly religious holidays). As such, they are seen as extremists by outsiders, and quite droll ones at that.
Most characters have fled here to escape social and legal persecution in the Old World, as well as to free themselves from what they consider to be prevalent sin and temptation.
The New World is more or less North America, and in particular, New England; the main difference is the lack of any native inhabitants, because that's a whole different can of worms. Essentially, though, the climate, flora and fauna, and landscape will be pretty much the same as colonial New England.
Character Slots
***characters that don't have a distinct occupation/job (like the governor, doctor, and sheriff) may have any kind of extraneous job or role in the town, such as blacksmith, fisherman, tailor, butcher, farmer, etc. etc. Characters are also welcome to have relationships such as siblings, spouses, parent/child, etc. Some roles may also have duplicates, which will be denoted with a *.
Member
Shadow Dragon