Zeroth

Night of the Marked [Dark Fantasy Int. Chk]

@knighthawk@Sophrus@Dynamo Frokane@BilboTheGreat

You're all very welcome to join, there's no cutoff point. I will ask, however, that people don't make more than two characters at a time simply because I have a personal dislike of creating a "party" run by a single player. When it comes to things like NPCs or their own enemies of the Night, though, everyone has pretty much free reign as long as it's reasonable.

EDIT: I'll probably have the OOC up later this afternoon.

Night of the Marked [Dark Fantasy Int. Chk]

@Dark Light@Lucius Cypher@SunsetWanderer@CharmingDevil@Halvtand

I've got some of the setting done, along with a CS. I hope we get some more interest, and that this will sway anyone who might still be on the fence. If any of you would like to expand the lore of the setting, add locations to the map, and other things, please let me know and we'll discuss it. I definitely want the players to be able to build this world up as much as they would like, I just want to make sure everything fits together smoothly. Same with the character sheet, I kind of feel like I might have left something out but I can't think of what at the moment.

Character Sheet

Name: X
Age, Gender: X, X

Appearance: Either image or description is equally fine.

Personality: I'd like some flaws as well as strengths, and not just things like "average looking" or "not very social." Give your character a positive quality strong enough to carry them through tough times, but an equally negative quality that impacts their life or decisions.

Backstory: In addition to the important details of your characters' life, include What Marked Them, and Why. If there are details you'd prefer to keep secret, PM me.

Equipment: In addition to swords, shields, and so on, you may include other important items your character might make use of, such as ropes or hunting traps. These tools should be focused around whatever method you'll use to survive the Night, whether that be through battle or wits. Just don't go too crazy with it; no one can carry an entire armory.

Theme: Music that you feel fits the character. Not necessary, but I feel it enhances the experience.

Other: Anything you feel doesn't fit the above sections.

The Shadowed Vale

Map

The Shadowed Vale is a northwestern province of a vast human kingdom, called such for the deep darkness cast over it by mountains, thick forests, and the rolling fog that rises from the lakes and rivers. During the day, and by the light of the flames, those who live on this frontier edge of the kingdom must work themselves to the bone to eke out their living. Yet despite this, the walls of Valeton have stood strong through many a terrible Night, and have weathered under the years only to be rebuilt time and time again. It is considered by some to be a stalwart bastion, and many a knight has gone forth from its walls to face the terrors that lie beyond.

Few of them ever return.

Valeton

A cramped city surrounding the Valefort Castle, it is a somewhat crude and wary place. The people here are slow to trust, knowing creatures of the Night may wear the guise of a man. They are hardy and stubborn, but life weighs heavy upon them. It is simply accepted here that many children may not live past their second year, or may be snatched up and replaced with a foul Changeling. There are few who could be called nobility, many of them second sons come from other parts of the kingdom. The town guard watches with a diligent eye, their swords and spears always close by. Even during the day, bonfires burn and candles light the window sills.

Count Alistair von Valens has ruled from his ancestral castle for thirty years now. He is a cold, unapproachable man, but he is ever vigilant against the Night.

Waelmist Lake

Cold mists always surround this lake, no matter what time of year or day. The rivers, full of snowmelt from the tops of the mountains, are cold enough to steal a man's breath away at a touch. Only the brave or reckless dare to take a boat into its waters, and only the stupid to swim beneath them. They say many an unfortunate has been dragged beneath, to the dark, seemingly endless depths below...

Yet there are others who speak of a Pale White Lady, who sings with a beautiful voice and walks atop the water...

Darkwald

This dark forest stretches for miles, and even in brightest noon its gnarled trees block the sun, their thorned branches outstretched like waiting claws. There are many a village of goblins and fey here who seek to entice and enchant an unwary traveler, and trolls and other unpleasant beasts make their homes beneath the roots and the hills. Every so often, on a pale moon's night, they become braver and wilder and leave the forest in host to assault the walls of Valeton, and any poor homestead or farmhouse in between. Supposedly, an Elven King holds court at the forests' center, but rarely does anyone return if they are still within the thicket after dark.

The Grind

These mountains were given their name for the echoing groans and the gnashing, grinding noise of stone against stone that rolls down the valley. Some say it is the voices of giants, or the thrashing of a dragon. Others say that the mountains are beginning to fall apart, great cliffs of stone giving way and sliding this way and that. The landscape is rumored to change even between a traveler's footsteps, that he may lose his way and become a helpless meal for the monsters waiting in the caves...

The Demented Tower

Once, long ago, the ancestor of Count Valens erected this tower. Its purpose and the methods of its construction are lost to time. Foolhardy adventurers seek treasure within it, and some have indeed returned bearing gold, or bright armor, or gleaming swords. Yet many go mad or give in to temptations of the Night, and thus the place is cursed by madness...

Once any questions/comments are cleared up, I'll probably put up the OOC tomorrow sometime.

Night of the Marked [Dark Fantasy Int. Chk]

Bump. Though the topic is tagged as Large Group, I'd probably say at least five or six besides myself would work as a bare minimum.

Night of the Marked [Dark Fantasy Int. Chk, in Casual]

Bump.

Night of the Marked [Dark Fantasy Int. Chk]

I like it. I may be willing to join, assuming you'd let the players make up some lore for their own characters.

I was thinking a sort of "barbarian", though personally he's more like just a guy who just never lived in a city or town for long. He raises dogs for hunting and guarding, and has his family's battleaxe from back when they were "barbarians". He's technically a poacher and not really a citizen of the nearby city/nation/whatever cause he never pays his taxes, and because of that he's a vagrant. It helps since he knows about the creature hunting him down; a mind-controlling, shapeshifting demon. She (though technically genderless it often takes the form of a woman) is not just trying to kill him, but take his soul so she can turn his body into an undead thrall and increase her own power by consuming his soul. This demon is also technically his mother (And grandmother, and great-grandmother, etc), because the way she steals your soul is through sex. His past fathers failed to slay the demon before she got to them, and now it's my character's turn to try to end his curse or end up an minion to her as well.

Possible enemies include: Wild animals, guardsmen who don't like barbarians/vagrants, his own undead ancestors, his former tribesmen (The one who raised him but for reasons he left on bad terms), and of course the demon herself. All my guy has is his family's axe, his own dagger, a pack of dogs, and the will to live. And just about all of those things are much more fragile than they appear.

@Lucius Cypher

Yes, the plan was for players to create their own lore and flesh out the setting on their own if they chose to do so, but I would still be looking over everything and making sure that what people came up with was consistent with what was already laid down. Your ideas would work pretty well as is, though maybe limit it to just one animal companion rather than a whole pack.

Just for ease of recognition, I was planning to work with known mythology/traditional fantasy creatures when it came to the Night--the Fair Folk, goblins and trolls, vampires and werewolves, things like that. If you'd like to make up other creatures of the Night I'm fine with it as long as it's fitting and fair. In the case you suggested, something like a succubus would probably work.

If I get more people interested, I can probably go ahead and work on some of the setting, so as to give people an idea of what they have as a base to build on. Character sheets too. As seen in the tags, I'd like a fairly large number of participants though.

Night of the Marked [Dark Fantasy Int. Chk]

Bump.

The Jade Stream

I'm hitting a serious wall and I have no idea why. I can post in other stuff.

@VitaVitaAR

Maybe show some of Torako's internal thoughts about how she can restore this friendship now that they know her secret? It's been made clear before that she can switch her mindset very quickly, but so far she has expressed herself mostly through action. Maybe get inside her head and show what she's thinking before she takes the actions. Even better, while she's thinking this, maybe her actions are a complete disconnect--the bubbly girl on the outside, the assassin on the inside.

Or, what if she's conflicted about whether or not she even wants that friendship anymore? An assassin isn't in the business of leaving witnesses, right? Does she consider the group to be a potential threat--maybe not even directly, but simply because they might spread word of what she's like and thus blow the cover she uses?

Night of the Marked [Dark Fantasy Int. Chk, in Casual]

Night of the Marked

---

---

In the beginning, there was Day, and there was Night. The ancient men prospered under the light of the sun, and cowered beneath the pale moon. They dared not venture into the Night, for the darkness was fear and fear brought death. The creatures of the night hated the day, and mankind. They sought the blood of humans for their feasts, and dark rituals, and all manner of vile purposes. Under the pale moon they were stronger, faster, and more impervious. With their nightcraft they weaved terrible curses and alluring enchantments to ensnare their prey. Men could do naught but shudder in fear...

Until, during the Day, men found fire. Fire was light, and light was life, and hope, and courage. With fire men faced the Night, and drove it back. With fire men forged steel to do battle. And with steel men chopped wood and chiseled stone, to build great walls and keep the Night at bay.

Yet the pale moon rises, and the Night draws closer once more. They seek out their victims and place upon them a brand, a disgusting stigma upon the flesh. The Marked fear even their own shadows; for the dark forces flock to them no matter where they run.

But hope is not lost. If the Marked slays that which branded him, he will be free. Until the sun sets once more, and the Day begins to fade...

---

This RP is a Dark Low-Fantasy inspired by Berserk, the Souls franchise, and dark fairy tales. There are two principal ideas. First, how will players overcome supernatural odds without magic or other superhuman abilities? Yes, you heard that right, a fantasy RP where the humans don't have any magic. More on that in a bit.

Secondly, what can players create when the story is up to them, rather than the GM? Every player in this RP will be Marked by the creatures of the Night. The Night Mark attracts evil creatures, but it also has a specific purpose. Whatever creature marked you can find you, no matter how far you run, no matter where you hide. Perhaps a Vampire marks a young woman as his next mistress, then tracks her down across the kingdom. Perhaps a pregnant woman is marked so her baby can be swept away and replaced with a Changeling. Whether the creature eats humans, sacrifices them, or worse...The players choose what marked them and why. Then it's up to the characters to deal with these monstrosities when they come to make good on their marks. I control the creatures attracted by the Mark, and work with players on the storylines to run things smoothly. As long as it's reasonable, fair, and most of all interesting, anyone can introduce plot threads.

Characters have a good reason to team up, because Marked attract one another the same way they draw the creatures of the night. To remove the curse, you must slay that which marked you, and there is strength in numbers.

Now, a bit more about magic. Magic does exist in the setting, but for the most part only the creatures of the Night can use it. The only "magic" that humans can use are the kinds that aren't really magic--old women who practice herblore and make foul smelling poultices might be called witches, and strange bespectacled men who peer over steaming beakers might be considered alchemists, but there is no real magic that is available to normal humans. At first one might say "well, how boring!" but my thought process is that, for one thing, an RP like this needs to be difficult. A fight with a werewolf is much harder for the guy who only has a sword and a shield, as opposed to the guy who can call down lightning. And in the same way that this is a tale of dark creatures, it is also a tale of those who fight those creatures. Of heroes.

And the best heroes get by not on the strength of unnatural powers, but by their character and cunning.

In addition to slaying the creatures of the Night, I had other ideas revolving around a Church, and the reaction of characters ostracized by society. I haven't developed a lot of the setting yet, as I'd like to see if I get any interest first. If you have any questions, ask away.

Night of the Marked [Dark Fantasy Int. Chk]

Night of the Marked

---

---

In the beginning, there was Day, and there was Night. The ancient men prospered under the light of the sun, and cowered beneath the pale moon. They dared not venture into the Night, for the darkness was fear and fear brought death. The creatures of the night hated the day, and mankind. They sought the blood of humans for their feasts, and dark rituals, and all manner of vile purposes. Under the pale moon they were stronger, faster, and more impervious. With their nightcraft they weaved terrible curses and alluring enchantments to ensnare their prey. Men could do naught but shudder in fear...

Until, during the Day, men found fire. Fire was light, and light was life, and hope, and courage. With fire men faced the Night, and drove it back. With fire men forged steel to do battle. And with steel men chopped wood and chiseled stone, to build great walls and keep the Night at bay.

Yet the pale moon rises, and the Night draws closer once more. They seek out their victims and place upon them a brand, a disgusting stigma upon the flesh. The Marked fear even their own shadows; for the dark forces flock to them no matter where they run.

But hope is not lost. If the Marked slays that which branded him, he will be free. Until the sun sets once more, and the Day begins to fade...

---

This RP is a Dark Low-Fantasy inspired by Berserk, the Souls franchise, and dark fairy tales. There are two principal ideas. First, how will players overcome supernatural odds without magic or other superhuman abilities? Yes, you heard that right, a fantasy RP where the humans don't have any magic. More on that in a bit.

Secondly, what can players create when the story is up to them, rather than the GM? Every player in this RP will be Marked by the creatures of the Night. The Night Mark attracts evil creatures, but it also has a specific purpose. Whatever creature marked you can find you, no matter how far you run, no matter where you hide. Perhaps a Vampire marks a young woman as his next mistress, then tracks her down across the kingdom. Perhaps a pregnant woman is marked so her baby can be swept away and replaced with a Changeling. Whether the creature eats humans, sacrifices them, or worse...The players choose what marked them and why. Then it's up to the characters to deal with these monstrosities when they come to make good on their marks. I control the creatures attracted by the Mark, and work with players on the storylines to run things smoothly. As long as it's reasonable, fair, and most of all interesting, anyone can introduce plot threads.

Characters have a good reason to team up, because Marked attract one another the same way they draw the creatures of the night. To remove the curse, you must slay that which marked you, and there is strength in numbers.

Now, a bit more about magic. Magic does exist in the setting, but for the most part only the creatures of the Night can use it. The only "magic" that humans can use are the kinds that aren't really magic--old women who practice herblore and make foul smelling poultices might be called witches, and strange bespectacled men who peer over steaming beakers might be considered alchemists, but there is no real magic that is available to normal humans. At first one might say "well, how boring!" but my thought process is that, for one thing, an RP like this needs to be difficult. A fight with a werewolf is much harder for the guy who only has a sword and a shield, as opposed to the guy who can call down lightning. And in the same way that this is a tale of dark creatures, it is also a tale of those who fight those creatures. Of heroes.

And the best heroes get by not on the strength of unnatural powers, but by their character and cunning.

In addition to slaying the creatures of the Night, I had other ideas revolving around a Church, and the reaction of characters ostracized by society. I haven't developed a lot of the setting yet, as I'd like to see if I get any interest first. If you have any questions, ask away.

FT | The Sky And The Earth

I did a little tidbit in my post that might make for a workable transition of sorts. I've also got an idea for what Travis will be hunting, if anyone wants to join him:

Hider