Māchina ex Deō [Open-- PM for details]

[Chainlinc3]

Māchina ex Deō

So, rather than repeating all the history from the Interest Check,
I'll just link that here and move on to world information:
History/Interest Check

I'm going to work on a prettyful map later, but for now you'll just have to deal with words. I know, I know, I'm such a jerk.

Aria-
Aria, as a continent, is not exactly a hospitable place. Surrounded by stormy seas made all the more inhospitable by the sheer cliffs along the coast, naval activity is next to impossible. Even when airships were developed, the intense storms off the coast could force even the sturdiest ship into the water. In the south is the Desert of Turokai, an expansive, scorching plain—concealing vast mineral wealth beneath its baked surface. To the north is the Khara Wastland, a mountainous region battered by blizzards and hailstorms almost the entire year. It is said that they contain mineral wealth dwarfing that found beneath Turokai, but establishing a trade caravan there is so terrifically expensive that mining operations are unfeasible. Thus far, all expeditions to explore past the relatively habitable portions of Khara and Turokai have disappeared in the uninhabited lands beyond. And so, habitation is limited mostly to the central regions of Aria. The ruins of Valkyria lie towards the south of this area, near the edge of Turokai.

Demons-
It is theorized that a world of energy lies in parallel to the world of matter—occupying the same space but still a distinct location. The demons are creatures of this realm, creatures of energy. While not inherently evil, it is hard for them to coexist with humans—Just as humans cannot eat just any matter they find lying around, demons can only gain sustenance from a few kinds of energy. The most obtainable of these is life energy, that driving force that makes humans tick. They lack any visible sort of organization, operating more as a horde than an army, but powerful magic users have historically been able to lead them—the most notable being Lochter the Traitor.
Despite coming from the realm of energy, most demons lack the ability to use magic aside from natural abilities, like existing in a permanent state of flame, regeneration, etc. Those which can use magic are typically limited to a handful of applications, usually all of one type—like glamours, evocation, etc. Basically, demons use magic the same way humans use their body—it’s something instinctive, reflexive, and some demons simply can’t find certain magical “muscles.” There are a few exceptions, but I’ll cover those later.
Demons come in various types—hellhounds, imps, and darklings to name a few. Observation indicates that these types are not locked, and that as a demon becomes more powerful (or simply changes its core skills) they will change type. It’s unknown if this change is a conscious decision or a natural metamorphosis, like some kind of evolution on-demand. Either way, the majority of demons come in the weaker, more common varieties (which I’ll introduce as we meet them—you’re free to make up your own for character backgrounds if you wish), and if you encounter a demon of a type you’ve never even heard of, you’re probably dead.

Magic-
Magic is the mental manipulation of energy to an ends. Generally, the source of this energy is Essence Crystals, though other power sources have been theorized and, to a minor extent, verified. To use magic, one simply draws energy from a reservoir (the crystal), channels it through their mind (for purpose) and their body (for shape), then releases it. The process, however, has the side effect of causing the user to experience tremendous pleasure, making it highly addictive and slowly wearing down the user’s sanity and mental defenses. As a result of this, advanced magic users are often susceptible to psychic influences. Furthermore, because demons are the most common beings to have psychic powers, magic users frequently fall under the sway of demons still in the realm of energy. Extremely powerful magic users can even be flat-out possessed by equally powerful demons, metamorphose into a demon with the ability to use magic like a human magic user while retaining the powers of a powerful demon—an exceptionally powerful foe.

Essence Crystals-
Energy cannot be created or destroyed—that’s a pretty fundamental law. Essence Crystals aren’t tapping into some mythical energy source, they are tapping into the realm of energy and binding the souls of demons. The Council’s research has found that each Essence Crystal typically has between one and a dozen souls bound to it, and it is these souls that begin to influence a magic user using the crystal first. The souls typically try to escape as quickly as they can, but a demon strong enough to possess a magic user may occasionally intentionally remain bound in hopes of possessing a future host. When used to power machinery, however, they will quickly escape, rendering the crystal useless as a power source.

Factions-
Magic Users:
The various magic users go by MANY different names; warlocks, magi, wizards, casters, conduits, acolytes, masters, lords, hermits, druids, and changelings, to name a few. Each of these names denotes a subtly different type of magic user, but they’re largely the same from an outsider’s perspective, and those who know little of their culture will often use the terms interchangeably. All those types of magic users, however, often don’t get along—“skirmishes” between schools/organizations of magic users routinely devastate large patches of Aria. There are dozens of large magic-user organizations, like the Academy of Essential Learnings (teaching magic for self defense), the Grey Congress (advocating a balance between all world powers), the Marionettes (trying to control all governments in secret in order to achieve peace), the Red Court (negotiating with demons for power), the Skeleton Chamber (semi-religious death cult), and the White Circle (using magic to fight the influence of demons. Also: irony resistant).

Demon Cults:
Cults centered around a single or even a group of demons are so plentiful they aren’t worth individual mentioning. Whether it’s a religious organization or simply a matter of survival is a detail—the cults always are offering fealty and periodic sacrifices in exchange for protection. Most often, these groups are warlike—enslaving their neighbors to provide a supply of sacrifices. The Five is the largest cult currently, previously led by five powerful demons manifested in human hosts—until the White Circle and the Grey Congress forged a temporary pact in order to halt their aggressive expansion. Now, they are leaderless, but still hold the loyalty of a huge number of cultists and lesser demons.

Hunters:
These people got the message that magic use exposes you to demonic influence—but didn’t get a dose of common sense to go with it. Without the technology of the Council or the power of magic, the various organizations of Hunters declared war on magic users and demons alike. They’ve generally been living rather short lives and leaving an awful lot of orphans (who then go on to die attempting to avenge their parents after training on a mountain somewhere, leaving orphans of their own). The few hunters that survive more than a few years in the trade become very skilled, but they still are no match at all for many demons. There are no noteworthy organizations of Hunters—only a few individuals who do little but live and die a hero to provide hope for the masses.

Spires:
Various organizations are attempting to rebuild the glory of Valkyria, and try to build their own spire-city. These groups typically have higher than average lifespan and quality of life, but none have come close to the sort of defenses Valkyria had. Spires are often combined with other faction types—ie: a cult spire, a magic user spire, etc. There isn’t a current spire group large enough to be worth mentioning—the largest historic one fell a little over a year ago. It was named Logos, and had been a prominent option for the Council to settle in at the time. Now, it’s just a ruined tower.

Scavengers:
Most common in Turokai, around the ruins of Valkyria, Scavengers are largely nomadic groups who make a living by harvesting derelict machinery, fixing it up, and reselling it. They tend to travel in giant caravans for safety, and can bring huge wealth to a town if they can be convinced to trade for more than just food and water. Like Spires, Scavengers are often combined with other faction types—ie: cultist scavengers, hunter scavengers, etc. Bands of Scavengers are only loosely affiliated, are rarely take the time to formally name their group.

Entrenchers:
These groups have a focus on security and defenses, building massive compounds into and on top of the mountains in the Khara Wasteland or another suitably isolated area. Typically, not even the demons bother them—they are simply too far away and too well defended for it to be worth the effort. As a result, the Entrenchers generally have the highest lifespan—but the lowest quality of life because they can rarely trade and it’s even rarer have the manpower to produce luxuries. Furthermore, they do not tolerate magic users within the compound—or even Essence Crystals, meaning that they cannot power any advanced technology. They are rather paranoid with regards to attack, and anyone living in the compound is considered part of the military, and required to participate in grueling daily training (assuming they are above the age of 8 or so). Their goal is to survive, and they do succeed—generally. The largest compound currently would be Opala, deep in the Khara Wasteland, followed closely by Hugh and Nado—a pair of compounds which split off from Opala when it got too large to manage.

Unaffiliated:
The most common type of faction, these are basically just towns with no ties to any of the other factions. They cling to what civilization they can, but generally are run down by demons or magic users wandering the countryside.

Faith-
In a world like Aria, people cling to whatever faith they can find.

Demons:
Demon worship is exceedingly common, although not unified. While over fifty percent of Aria’s population engages in some form of demon worship (as of the Council’s last scouting mission two years ago), they are highly fractured and prone to infighting. Sometimes the demons pass themselves off as gods, sometimes they make no attempt to hide behind a façade—either way they require absolute loyalty, and a steady stream of human sacrifices.

The Unity:
In the night sky of Aria, a large constellation in the shape of an open eye can be seen directly overhead regardless of where you stand. It is called the Allspring, and is the source of the oldest religion in Aria. Claiming the Allspring as the source of everything in the world, followers of the Unity see magic as a gift from the Allspring and embrace it to fight off the invading demons—which are the Allspring’s punishment for striving after forbidden powers. The Unity has barely an eighth of Aria’s population as followers as of the Council’s last reconnaissance, but it has strong ties to the White Circle.

The Legion of the Fleshless Goddess:
Technically a demon cult, the Legion of the Fleshless Goddess is led by a powerful necromancer by the name of Maria who was possessed by a demon named Ul’Ghahet several decades ago—the metamorphosis left her literally as a skeleton, not a scrap of flesh left on her. Now the pair co-operate towards their common goal of power, switching control of the body as needed. Their flock includes a solid sixth of the world population, according to the Council’s intelligence at least, but the horde of skeletons, zombies, and spirits at their command makes their numbers even larger. They operate largely in Khara, preying on the Entrenchers despite the inherit foolishness of attacking such a well defended foe.

Generic Cults:
There are hundreds of small, single-village cults with maybe a dozen parishioners and names like The Order of the Blue Ox. I’m really not going to make a comprehensive list.

Cradles-
The three leading options for settlement being debated currently are Opala (whose governing council has expressed hesitant interest), the ruins of Valkyria, and simply pushing further into Turokai and rebuilding Valkyria in a more isolated location.

Character Sheet:
Name: (Straightforward enough.)
Age: (Don’t overcomplicate it.)
Gender: (I didn’t say sex for a reason.)
Appearance: (Either a picture or a description will do-- no real preference there. Also no real preference between art or photograph if you use a picture, just nothing too trippy.)
Origin: (Ideally, this should be covered in your bio, but just for clarity’s sake please state it here. If it wasn’t a settlement/organization mentioned in the above info (and I didn’t mention a whole lot of them for a reason) then give a fair amount of background on the group—how long it has existed, population estimate, and just a general summary of its activities. As you may have guessed, you’re free to come up with your own organizations—but I’m also free to reject them if they’re something goofy that would just detract from the world.)
Profession: (What does your character do to get by from day to day? Ideally, this should also be in your bio, but I figured I’d leave it separate in case you wanted to detail your character’s career or something.)
Bio/History: (If you honestly don’t know what to put here, FoG probably isn’t the place for you. On a more specific note, I’m not looking for a bunch of action heroes here. Everyone should be more or less mortal, and so if I see some kind of macho kickass demon slayer from a long line of macho kickass demon slayers who were betrayed and slaughtered by their former allies so you’re the only macho kickass demon slayer left, I will kill you.)
Personality: (What is your character like, etc, etc.)
Skills: (I assume the Council isn’t recruiting a useless pile of bones for this operation. What skills to you bring to the table? Please keep it within reason, or contact me via PM, IRC, or telepathy if you aren’t sure.)
Equipment: (Again, keep it reasonable. Also, you’ll be getting gear from the Council, so basic stuff like a weapon and armor will be provided, but if you want something personal (like your character’s grandfather’s sword or something) list it here. Keep in mind that fairly advanced Essence-based firearms do exist, but so do Essence-based defenses to neutralize these attacks. Basically, if you specialize in melee, you could get in trouble at a range, and if you specialize at a range, you could get in trouble in melee.)

Empty Skeleton:
Name:
Age:
Gender:
Appearance:
Origin:
Profession:
Bio/History:
Personality:
Skills:
Equipment:

Parting Note: If you have any questions, comments, or general ranting, please contact me or just post them here. Other than that, I'll have my character sheet up ASAP, and I look forward to seeing what you guys come up with.

Update (7/13)-
Just dropping in a few addendums. I'll try and get my CS posted later today, but given my record for timeliness these last few weeks, I wouldn't depend on it.

Addendum I: Essence Crystals--
Essence crystals basically are created from a mineral found deep beneath old Valkyria-- there are other places to find it, but those who discover deposits are rather unlikely to go telling people where they are. The mineral, called Espic, is found in caverns deep underground. These caverns are typically filled with what Espic miners call "Guardians"-- regular cavern life, but changed in subtle ways by the taint of Espic in the air and water. Their bodies typically exhibit longer, sharper claws and fangs, and toughened, nearly chitinous skin. To top it all off, they are far more aggressive than their natural counterparts-- who generally don't take kindly to people bringing light into their caves in the first place.

Once it is harvested, the Espic needs to be processed-- this procedure goes by many names: cleansing, purifying, consolidating, and others. The basic goal is to keep Espic from breaking into a powder and becoming airborne, because airborne Espic will rapidly lead to uncontrollable aggression in those who inhale it.

Processed Espic looks like small rocks-- it's been compared to gravel, sand, and grain. Going from there to Essence Crystals is as simple as dissolving the Espic in water, boiling away the water, and harvesting the crystals that formed in the pot/pan. It is worth noting that water with Espic dissolved in it takes a whole lot of heat to boil, and even then it boils slowly-- some people consider it more efficient to just wait for the water to evaporate, which also takes much longer than normal water, but uses no energy.

When an Essence Crystal is used up, it shatters into small shards-- not quite the same as Processed Espic, but chemically identical and thus interchangeable. Dissolve, boil, repeat.

In terms of why the Essence Crystals are binding demon's souls when they are created, it's basically just chemistry-- Just as an endothermic reaction sucks in thermal energy from it's surroundings, the Essence Crystals absorb spiritual energy as they crystallize. The theory is that the Realm of Energy is occupying the same space as the physical world, but is also intensely crowded-- meaning that a demon's soul is almost always "closer" to the solidifying crystal than the soul of a living human. There have been a handful of recorded cases of a human's soul being trapped in an Essence Crystal, but not enough for any in-depth analysis of the differences between a crystal with a demon's soul and one with a human's, however. The Council recommends keeping several animals between you and solidifying crystals at all times, just as a precaution.

Addendum II: Necromancy--
Necromancy itself is simply the summoning and binding of souls. Binding includes two key portions-- physical and spiritual.

Physical binding is binding the soul to an object-- like a skeleton or a suit of armor-- to give it a permanent physical form. Spirits are generally more inclined to be bound to a form resembling their earthly form, if not the same form they had while alive. So, if you wanted to reanimate a human warrior, his corpse would be an easier form than another human's corpse which would be easier than an elf's corpse (not that we have elves, just an example) which would be easier than an elephant's corpse. It is possible to not bind the spirit to a physical form, but that means it will constantly be engaged in a struggle of wills when facing demons who wish to feed on it-- it would take an exceptionally powerful spirit to resist any but the weakest feeding attempts.

Spiritual binding is binding the soul to the summoner's will, ensuring that he/she is not killed by his own undead minions. The more powerful the soul (kinda an abstract concept- having to do with the soul's determination, as well as the various skills they had while living), the harder it is to bind it to the summoner's will. If the soul is willing to help anyway, spiritual binding can by skipped over-- but most souls simply want to rest in the afterlife, so a spiritual binding is necessary. In effect, a spiritual binding is suppressing the soul's identity, meaning that while they will be perfectly obedient, their knowledge will be unavailable (ie- if a soul lived in a city, then once you used a spiritual binding on it, it would be unable to, say, give you directions). Note that skills don't fall under the category of knowledge for most undead: a skeletal baker could still make you a damn good cake. Not as good as when he/she was alive, but they still have the capability.

[Hisoka]

Name: Gareth Fuller
Age: 49
Gender: Male
Origin: Hailing from Opala, deep within the Khara Wasteland Gareth grew tired of entrenched life. Leaving the place of his birth Gareth toured the lands as part time everything really. Everything from scavenging to hunting and even a little mercenary work on the side Gareth has earned a reputation as a man who gets the job done. Currently he is living within a small village called Desmond's Well in the Desert of Turokai.
Profession: Hunter Scavenger
Bio/History: Born in the Entrencher fortress city of Opala to somewhat loving parents Gareth knew his lot in life from quite an early age. There were only so many bumps in the night that His parents could fabricate lies for after all. And then there was the days when the demons attacked in broad daylight, destroying all the minor hope his parents had for a few normal years for the child.

That was the final nail in the coffin, the childhood of an Entrencher didn't last long. As was standard practice at the age of eight Gareth found himself rounded up with every other eight year old and sent off to the training that would become a part of everyday life. It was without a word brutal, sadistically so it seemed to the child. But soon it turned the child into a well tuned fighting machine. His childish body became filled out with lean muscle and his hands became scarred and calloused from the chafing of his weapons. His once flowing blonde hair shaved down to mere fuzz and his grey eyes acquired a hard glint to them.

Of course the child never did forget the simple joys of childhood even as he became a man of twenty years. The day to day life of an entrencher was like a bitter dose of medicine to his soul. Sure the bitter medicine kept him alive but the bitterness of it's taste lingered long in the mouth. And so he planned to escape the shackles of fate even as he came to see their purpose. After all the life of entrencher was a long one if nothing else. Love, laughter, and life became more important to him then mere duty, though never did it's obligations totally leave him. Gareth justified his rebellious urges to himself however through the simple fact that the entrenchers as a trained and experienced core could do more for duty's sake outside their walls then within them.

But that was the prime limiting factor, the walls of Opala were both tall and strong. Atop the ramparts marched sentries ever vigilant in their duty, Gareth had shared such duty with them enough times to know that. The walls kept Opala safe but they also kept it shut off and represented the death of his desire for freedom.

The story however had only begun as they said and Gareth realized this in the twenty first year of his life. A group of scavengers driven no doubt by need had made Opala their stop. For greed would have seen them move on, well defended Opala may be but rich it was not. Their wagons and guards were nothing special but it represented a way out for the man tired of the shackles of fate. They, the scavengers, after trading their meagre goods for even leaner rewards decided to stay the night for Opala's mere presence deterred the normal dangers of the lands around it. This only added to the foolhardy plan that brewed ever more higher in Gareth's mind.

In the dead of night, when the darkness gathers in rebellion of the dawn and even the stars seem to shine less brightly Gareth made his way over the walls of his birthplace. Or rather tried to at the very least, the sentries of
Opala were skilled in their duties and duty was a sacred vow to them. Needless to say Gareth's apparent abandonment of said sacred vow was not going over well with them. Gareth with all his worldly possessions in tow was forced to do battle with the men and women he had trained and bled besides.

The skirmish such as it was made Gareth question for a brief moment the wisdom of his plan. Was freedom worth the blood price of slaying a comrade in arms, would the Allspring even welcome him back after his naked blade cut down those he swore fellowship to. The clash of steel however forced his hand and before he could yield the blade of a fellow entrencher sliced a wide gash across his forehead. The warm,wet cascade of blood blinded him though luck saved him that night. Thrusting forward with the slender blade of his rapier Gareth managed against all odds to find the chink in the armour of his attacker.

Dashing blood and tears from his eyes Gareth ran for both his life and the mortal fear killing a comrade in arms brings about. A headlong run from the fate that was now being noosed around his neck. For honour died the moment his blade killed his sworn brother.

Eventually though even grief and fear could no longer over come the exhaustion running the coarse trails of the Khara Wasteland imbued in one. And coming to halt because of such sheer exhaustion Gareth curled up between to convenient rocks that were more or less out of the wind's path. Head against the cold stone the former entrencher lay senseless to the world for quite some time. Though his body was still the dreams a troubled mind is haunted with plagued him still. The folly of his plans, his own inner doubts, and the feel of his rapier ending a life mingled in a nightmare that never has truly left him.

Upon waking up under the cruel and cold sun of his homeland Gareth knew he was in deeper trouble then the horror of nightmares. He was cut off from the only source of supplies in the area. And the cruelty of demons was known only too well to him. Demons however were not his main concern, frighteningly powerful as they were a strong heart and a good weapon would win out most times. His lack of rations and water were the most pressing concerns, after hunger and thirst could not be denied no matter how strong one's will was.

Luck however ,as with the fight last night, was with him. Deciding moving was the best option, for he would find no food or water merely standing around He stumbled across a most welcome sight. The scavenger caravan of last night was apparently early risers for despite the fact Gareth had been running headlong nearly all night they were ahead of him. They lay encamped for the afternoon rest and a more pleasing sight there was not to be found for the former entrencher. Not knowing who he was they signed him aboard after he proved his worth with a weapon.

And so were the ashes of his old life swept away, though never discarded. The rhythms of a scavenger's life became second hand to him and in the ruins and such the worth of his skills became truly polished. Battles with demons and rival groups saw him put his blade to good use, and saw him forge a reputation. But as with entrencher life the novelty wore off quickly though Gareth always found time to help the original band he signed up with he grew ever increasingly solitude craving.

This came to head on the day of his thirty-second year of life, the settled nature of the entrencher was still very much a part of him. So in that spirit he moved to Desmond's Well, one of the more successful small settlements in the Turokai desert. It owed it success to being largely ignored by powers that be in the lands of Aria. This was due to the fact Desmond's Well was dirt poor, had a rather limited population, and abysmally small number of magic users. Neither the raiders,demons,or powers that be saw much use in Desmond's Well.

Making his home in this rather forlorn and forgotten piece of Aria Gareth took once more the mantle of hunter and scavenger. If nothing else the harshness of life outside the walls of Opala had not diminished his sense of duty to the greater good. And so the few demons,raiders, and other riff raff that threatened Desmond's Well was promptly taken care of. And with the resources he obtained hiring out his sword to the more savoury of mercenary bands he helped turn Desmond's Well into a more habitable places. In particular his skills as a former entrencher saw great use in the design and building of the defences of his adopted home town.

Now forty nine years of age Gareth's hair is more grey then blonde and his eyes hold the weariness only age can confer. But his back is as straight as ever and his body still holds the toned muscles of a man half his age. In Desmond's Well he is hailed as something of a paragon while his reputation of getting the job done has seen him become demanded by those with a need for his skills.

Personality: Gareth is the sort of man who looks at the bigger picture, a trait that is a left over from his days as an entrencher. Always willing to make personal sacrifices to ensure the greater good is carried out he nonetheless holds dearly to his hard won freedom. At the same time he is haunted by the price his freedom cost. This perhaps drives him to unrivalled heights of hard work, unknowingly trying to repay the blood price his freedom was bought with.

Though he does not hesitate to kill somebody or something if his hand is forced Gareth does no kill for simple joy. Every conceivable option has to be exhausted before he will draw his blade. And even then do not expect him to embrace the act or even to think it was the right path. For him the act of killing is sometimes a necessary act but it never is the right one for there is no pure evil nor any true good, thus there can be no right path.


Skills:
Master Builder- Due to both his entrencher training and scavenger experiences there isn't a single thing concerning building,repairing, and designing that eludes him.

Demonology Expert- A life time of fighting and hunting demon kind has endowed Gareth with an in-depth knowledge of Demon kind.

Entrencher Soldier- The required military service of his people have turned Gareth into an expert on melee combat and toughened both his body and mind.

Scavenger's Advantage- A life time of scavenging has left Gareth impressively equipped and despite his generous ways somewhat rich.

Learning Curve- Though he has never favoured magic due to his Entrencher upbringing Gareth is somewhat familiar with the theory and use of it. Favouring the safer use of Essence in firearms he nonetheless carries any number of crystals designed for more immediate use.
Equipment:

Entrencher Spike- A rapier given to him upon enlistment it features a slender blade designed more for thrusting then slashing. It's plain and unassuming features hid it's high level crafting. His flight from his birthplace has seen numerous retrofits made to the once plain sword.

Retrofit One: A number of essence sockets have been fitted upon the cup hilt, designed to allow the blade to be temporary enchanted with elemental properties.

Retrofit Two:The handle of the blade has been wrapped in essence enchanted red leather. Designed to increase the kinetic force transferred into each thrust by marginal amounts.

Retrofit Three: Though the steel of the blade was strong to begin with Gareth was forced to reforge it to withstand the force of essence enchantment. This has resulted in a blade with a distinct rippling pattern.

Sentry- A essence powered side arm it is a somewhat bulky pistol design featuring multiple barrels ( a grand total of 7) designed to eliminate the need for constant reload. Despite it's old fashion design Sentry is remarkable powerful given it's size and barrel length. Each of the barrels comes in at 12 inches while the handle is surprisingly ergonomic in shape. Crafted of brass coloured metal it makes quite the statement slung upon one's hips.

Capable of accepting a wide variety of essence crystals it's greatest feature is a shotgun mode in which all remaining ammo is expended at once. Needles to say this allows for powerful shots to be placed though accuracy does suffer from the recoil.

Essence Crystals- The ever ubiquitous crystals, life blood of any mage out there and the only tool at his disposal that frightens Gareth. Sparingly used and only after a quick prayer to the Allspring passes his lips.

Entrencher's Wall- A black titanium breastplate enchanted by essence it features the plain and no nonsense approach one would expect of Entrencher armour, though the enchantment is a later add on made by Gareth. Absolutely plain it is obviously a master work piece of armour even to the lay man. Given Gareth's distaste of magic the strength of it's enchantment remains to be seen however.

[Chainlinc3]

O.O
I'm impressed. And a little frightened. Just so nobody runs off scared: I don't expect a bio that long. I don't mind it especially, but don't feel pressured to make a wall o' bio. Mhm.

Other than that, the only real problem I saw was in his escape-- while I could see the Entrenchers having a real focus on honor and duty, I don't think they'd mind people leaving so much as they'd mind people coming. After all, you can't trust an outsider, but what harm is there in letting someone leave? It'd be frowned on, sure, but I don't really see a conflict breaking out. Now, if he were to abandon his post or otherwise undermine the security of the settlement, I could see it, but I just don't see them preferring to waste a life than to let it live somewhere else. So, simple problem, complicated solution... :\

Unless you see a simpler way. I mean, it's your character, you can make the final call 'cause I don't have any real requirements for Opala and it's culture. It's just not the way I had it currently envisioned.

[Hisoka]

I see it more as the danger Gareth's knowledge represents is the real reason they'd view his leaving with hostility. Think about it Gareth would be intimately familiar with Opala's defences and training methods. Such knowledge could be used to great effect by an attacking force should Gareth ever decide to join Opala's enemies or if the knowledge was forced from him through various means, i.e torture or to make a quick buck.

[Chainlinc3]

erm... I suppose so. I'd pictured Opala's isolation as it's greatest defensive measure, but the Legion wouldn't really care about that, so.... that makes sense.

Looking over your skills, though, there were two things-- first, it doesn't seem overly balanced to be masterful at building *and* combat *and* skilled with magic. It all is justified, which is normally my biggest concern, but I'd still be more comfortable if you downgraded Master Builder to something related to improvising (like cobbling together a machine in the field, piecing together a rough bunker, etc) rather than design and manufacturing (which, now that I think of it, only people from the University would really understand *all* the intricacies of).

The second thing is simpler: I get that he's had run-ins with demons before, and he'd be familiar with at least the common types and some of the rarer ones, people don't live to the age of 50 making a habit of fighting demons-- they're too lethal of a foe, and (especially when you get past the grunts) there's very little known about their powers and weaknesses (ie- Oh, so you CAN throw fireb-- OHGODPAIN). So, really, no single person has ever acquired the extent of knowledge you talk about there... :\

[Hisoka]

Gareth is a master builder only in the sense the Brotherhood of Steel and the Enclave in Fallout 3 are master builders. Were they as good as prewar governments,no but compared to the rest of the wasteland they know far more about building,designing,and repairing as evidenced by the way their troops are equipped. As for magic I don't plan on having him being all that skilled in it. Mostly he fumbles around in the dark when it comes to it. Sometimes you get lucky,sometimes you have to wait for your eyebrows to grow back,and others you somehow unleash a banshee on Bloodstone.

As for the demons I'll say this now your going to have to do something about them. I mean if the only option is to run and cry for your mommy this story is going nowhere fast.

[Chainlinc3]

Mmk, just wanted to make sure we were on the same page.

And running away isn't the only option against the demons-- humanity just hasn't made an organized, well equipped counter strike yet. Simply put, without the University's technology (which has been kept pretty tightly in their control), mano-a-mano is about the best a skilled hunter can do against anything other than the weakest demons. This is why the living have been forced to retreat into walled settlements-- taking the fight to the demons is simply too risky. We, as the University's first organized attack on the demons, will have technology to give us a substantial advantage over the independent hunters. But there *is* a reason I portrayed the hunters as doing little other than dying. I'm not saying that you need to remove that entirely, because the Council would logically be looking for the best of the best, but if he was fighting with more than the occasional low/mid-tier demons that wandered his way, he simply wouldn't last that long.

[Hisoka]

It's pretty unrealistic also to expect the average reader to swallow the fact that technology is kept under the control of a single group. Technology, especially weapon technology has a way of leaking out to the general public. I mean isn't that how Essence crystals become widely available to the general public in this story's canon?

Point being there is no way a single group could contain their discoveries and technology. There are always security leaks in even the highest level of R&D, always have been always will be. It's the whole reason companies hire internal affairs officers.

[Dreamless Days]

Odds are this is rife with mistakes, just tell me what you want changed.

Name: Whyte Rhann

Age: 17

Gender: Male

Origin: Whyte was born in a town known as Banora's Edge, built in the Khara Wastland mountains, situated on a cliff. It was founded decades ago by the Cult Leader Banora (Where the town gains it's namesake). The town was inhabited by Demonic Cultist worshipping a powerful demon named Cerberus, a Hell Hound with three heads. However, as of two years ago, the town no longer exists.

Profession: Wandering Magi/Apprentice

Bio/History: Whyte was a so called, lucky child. In the sense that he was born to two healthy parents. But also in the sense that he was chosen at birth by the demon Cerberus.

Born with latent magical aptitude, Whyte was given an amulet containing a small essence crystal within the day he was born. Allowing him to one day become a magic wielder. This was not done by chance, but by the demon that was worshipped within Banora's Edge.

Cerberus. The great three headed Hell Hound. Seen as a Demon God by Banora and his followers, this demon has chosen a new born from every "litter", and allowed the child to grow so that one day, they might become it's vessel.

Whyte was chosen due to the power felt within his tiny body, stemming from his parent's over use of essence all their lives. As he grew older, he was groomed to become Cerberus' vessel, being the strongest child offered to the demon.

Cerberus' "blessed" Whyte with gifts, gaining his favour as he grew. Including giving him a branch from a tree known as "Yggdrasil". It was fashioned into a weapon for Whyte, but it's only real use was as a Magic Enhancer for his untrained skills.

Upon Whyte turning fifteen years of age, Cerberus' offered the boy a final gift. The gift of Cerberus itself. To become it's eternal vessel and lend his talents to a being that could use them. Whyte refused.

Over time, Whyte had begun to question the family he had always known and the demon they worshipped. Why was it they always did as it told, and what did it plan to use his body for? He had finally come to his decision to no longer be a pawn for Cerberus on the day a White Circle mage had come to the village hoping to cleanse it of Cerberus. The town had mercilessly murdered the mage on Cereberus' order. Whyte had believed the mage to be doing good, and had wanted to train with him to further his abilities. It was due to Cerberus' act, that Whyte turned against the demon.

Upon Whyte refusing to accept Cerberus' offer, it threatened to destroy all that he loved if he did not give it his body. Whyte continued to refuse. In but a second, the town was ablaze, along with all the worshippers Whyte had seen as family.

Finally seeing Cerberus' powers with his own eyes, Whyte ran. Barely escaping the demon by fleeing down the mountain, he began to realize the Cerberus' had no physical form. It needed Whyte's body in order to enter this world for some reason, and thus, running would not help.

While he continued to move from place to place, often riding with scavengers and proving his worth by warming them with the basic fire abilities he possessed, he never stayed in one place too long. Always starting to run when he saw Cerberus in his dreams. To see it there was a sign of it getting closer to stealing his body away.

For two years Whyte has run from Cerberus, and still he cannot stop. Ever searching for a way to escape it's eye. Searching for a master to teach him how.

Personality: While wary of the people he travels with, Whyte still possesses that child like innocence that makes him alert people of his status as a Magi, due to his longing to find a master. He his afraid of sleeping, and often has trouble doing so out of fear of Cerberus finding him.

Skills:

Anima Magic (Apprentice Level)
Mostly only able to cast fireball like spells due to a lack of training, when channelled through Yggdrasil's Blade, the spells are able to become slightly stronger and useful in a melee situation. (Currently only able to cast Fire element Anima Spells.)

Equipment:

Yggdrasil's Blade
A wooden sword fashioned from a branch of Yggdrasil. While alone the sword is more or less useless, it has the ability to have essence channelled into it, thus allowing the blade to be unharmed by magical spells and the like. Also allowing it to be enhanced with spells temporarily.

Cerebus Crystal Amulet
An amulet with a small but powerful essence crystal fashioned by Cerberus and given to Whyte as a child. Simply wearing this crystal allows him to channel the energies within and cast magic quickly. Supposedly contains part of Cerebus' spirit inside.

[The Calamity]

As Salaam-Alaikum, Greetings, and Namaste!

This is excellent! The originally composed background post is absolutely amazing, although I did notice a few grammatical errors. No one can be perfect I suppose. As it were, the discussion already is quite enticing. Honestly, while Hisoka has in some manner provided evidence for why his character is the way it is I would suggest that instead of arguing to keep your character the same that you merely correct the problems as requested by the GM. Altering your character in which may provide them with a weaker presence adds difficulty to the "game" portion of the writing endeavor. In all honestly, I've only skimmed the sheet; however, from what I gathered including the skimmed results and the subsequent discussion it feels as though the creator is trying to take center stage. This is just a lay person's PoV but if a character is perceived as being a spotlight stealer or overpowered it is highly likely that it may ruin the activity for everyone.

Since I am done with my rant I shall poise a question to you Mister Gamemaster. Currently, I have a vague character concept swirling about my noggin but I would prefer an okay before I begin to solidfy this creature into a more material form. Would it be totally out of the realm of possibility in which to play a character constructed something like a clockwork humanoid to be given to the party as a means to fight against the demons? In concept, the creature would be built like a standard humanoid hidden behind humanoid clothes or armor and fueled by a singular essence crystal or a mechanism that would have to have the crystal change at regular intervals.

A prompt response would of course be appreciated because I am trying to get it done sometime tomorrow but I'll wait for the okay before I even think of starting a character sheet.

[Chainlinc3]

@The Calamity
It's entirely possible, but the issue would be giving the body any sort of intelligence. The easiest way would be to find a consciousness lying around in an essence crystal and somehow "hook it up" to the body, and I think that would be theoretically possible. The difficulty would be that a clockwork soldier controlled by a demon's spirit is... unlikely to help the team fight off demons, you know? xD

But yeah. The intelligence behind the machine would be the real kicker-- if you could explain that without having a demon that just wants to fight demons for some obscure reason, it should be okay.

@Dreamless Days
You have a few random sentence fragments... Nothing major, but still awkward.

Other than that, two things:
1. There's no Yggdrasil here, so I assume Cerebus was lying and it's just some random branch he enchanted, yes?
2. I'm not sure what all you mean by Anima magic, but if you're talking fireballs and stuff (I think you said something about fireballs, yes?) then that would be evocation (Because I was planning on using the Dresden Files classifications ). But if you meant more than FLASH-BANG-POW style magic, then we might need to find a different classification.

@Hisoka
Point being, the Council singlehandedly did the research on this stuff. While flying. With minimal outside contact. Technology doesn't disperse if there's not a boundary for it to disperse along. Yes, the Essence Crystals did make it out, but that was a once-in-several-centuries occurrence. There are small leaks every so often-- say a scout is sent out, killed by demons, and scavengers pick up his gear and start trying to reverse engineer it. The won't understand it all, but it's enough that the ground has entry level technology. The Council, is fielding the real McCoy.

Oh, and internal affairs is to keep people from selling secrets to rival firms. At the moment, there's nobody with the money to buy off one of the University staff, because the entire world is being continuously pillaged and anyone with a modicum of wealth gets the shit beaten out of them.

[Hisoka]

You seriously expect me to believe there isn't a single organisation besides The Council that is researching at least something approaching this level of technology despite this overwhelming threat demons represent. And furthermore you also expect me to believe there isn't a single person with the wealth to buy the secrets a corrupted University staff member could offer. I mean anyone with any sort of wealth would most likely hire a mercenary company to protect them, hell rich people in the real world often hire armed guards. And I seriously doubt every single mercenary company would betray their employer for short term gain versus the long term gain being employed offers.

[Chainlinc3]

People are certainly researching the technology, but have they come close to the knowledge Valkyria represented? No! A demon invasion, contrary to popular belief, is NOT a conducive environment for learning. And think about it-- even the dirt poor settlements are being overrun on a regular basis, anyone with an ounce of wealth would have been run down long ago and said money would have been added to some raider's stash until he got killed, or thrown on some demon's treasure pile until it was slain. You seem to expect the world to, well, function in the middle of a nigh-apocalyptic scenario.

TL:DR- Yes, as the person who wrote this world, I do expect you to believe me when I tell you about the world.

[Hisoka]

Yes I do expect the world to function, because until somebody puts a gun to it's head and pulls the trigger the world is going to keep functioning. And that hasn't happened yet within this world of yours, otherwise there would be no story to begin with. People need to eat, People need to have clothes on their back, and People most certainly need to live. And to fulfil these needs your average person is going to do everything within their power. This Valkyria civilization may have been the pinnacle of it's time but that does not mean it was the only superpower of it's time, that sort of thinking just doesn't hold water.

Just because it is a fantasy does not mean we should throw reality completely out the window. Every single political situation has at least two equals duking it out. Furthermore these demons of yours seem rather well odd. They are strong enough to be these invulnerable killers you say they are and yet they seem to be stopped by a few walls and the odd soldier manning them.

[Chainlinc3]

This Valkyria civilization may have been the pinnacle of it's time but that does not mean it was the only superpower of it's time, that sort of thinking just doesn't hold water.

See, there's your problem. Valkyria was the only super-power of it's time, simply because everyone else was too busy killing the shit out of each other to actually learn anything. Remember that whole history thing, with the feuding warlords and the making the world inhospitable and the Valkyria being inundated by refugees tired of getting the shit killed out of them? Yeah. That's kinda the whole point of the world.

And yeah, the demons being stopped by a few walls with soldiers on them? Not so much. I believe I've pointed out that settlements are lasting mere months. In fact, I think I've pointed it out several times now.

Frankly, I'm not going to change the world to suit your whims. I've explained myself to you, I've given you the justification, and frankly, you're the only person who seems to have a problem with it. The world is supposed to be in flames. The only super power has fallen, and the only one rising to replace it is the demons, which can hardly be construed as a super power with their level of disorganization. Humans live on the run, hunted by supernatural being and, on the odd occasion, their fellow men. I'm sorry if I somehow misled you with regards to that fact, but I feel I've been rather clear all along that the demons are supposed to be a serious bad-- the only victories being won against them are Pyrrhic. I furthermore believe that I made it clear at several points in the OP that I was not looking for some badass demon slayer who's been there and done that. I've tried to correct you with varying levels of politeness, but frankly your character is the "macho kickass demon slayer" that I've been trying to avoid clear from the start. If your not willing to change him, then I'm afraid this RP simply isn't for you.

Oh, and don't even try those shenanigans about every political situation involving two equals. If you want to argue politics, we can argue politics, but we can have that argument somewhere that won't clutter the OOC.

[Dreamless Days]

1. There's no Yggdrasil here, so I assume Cerebus was lying and it's just some random branch he enchanted, yes?

Correct. The tree itself was just a normal one, as you said, Cerberus simply enchanted a large branch and claimed it to be a branch of some powerful tree named "Yggdrasil", I in no way meant that The World Tree existed in this world, haha.

2. I'm not sure what all you mean by Anima magic, but if you're talking fireballs and stuff (I think you said something about fireballs, yes?) then that would be evocation (Because I was planning on using the Dresden Files classifications ). But if you meant more than FLASH-BANG-POW style magic, then we might need to find a different classification.

Anima Magic encompasses the elemental magics established as Fire, Ice and Lightning, though, it is basically the classification used in the Fire Emblem game series. I simply used that because that's how I know it. (For reference in that classification, Anima > Light > Darkness >Anima)

[Chainlinc3]

I prefer the Dresden Files classifications, myself, because they feel less artificial than a lot of other things. For example, evocation magic is fast, on the fly magic that's generally destructive-- throwing things, exploding things, etc. I suppose I can leave the magic classifications up to you guys ultimately, but I *am* hoping to avoid having two fire users each claiming to practice a different type of magic. Theoretically possible, yes, confusing, hell yes.

Also, @The Calamity, I've had a bit of an oversight brought to my attention-- In the history thing, I start off talking about clockwork armies and steam powered juggernauts, yes? So then how did they have sentience and your character has to come up with his own way? Weeell, the answer is: I dun goofed. I wasn't clear in that intro, and it's my fault, but my *intention* was that the "clockwork armies" consisted of machines, like crude tanks and whatnot, not actual clockwork soldiers. In other words, they had human pilots. So, a clockwork/steam-powered armature with a person inside would be totally possible (clunky and lacking fine motor skills, but possible), but I still don't have any ideas for an actual sentient machine. Sorry for the confusion!

[Dreamless Days]

Just a note, Whyte doesn't know it as Anima Magic, he just knows it as magic as a whole. Being young, he doesn't know much if anything about magic in a sense, he just knows how to kind of use it.

Calling it Anima Magic in his bio and the like was just a personal preference. Like I said, Anima is just elemental magics. Hell, the term really only covers Fire, Ice and Lightning, none of the other elements (such at water, earth, wind, etc). So yeah, don't read too much into the name.

[Chainlinc3]

Meh, works for me.

[The Calamity]

Well I haven't had the time to really sit down and give it any thought because of real life getting in the way; however, saturday should be the day when I can sit down and write something up. Thank you for the clarification and with it I have found a more clear idea of what I am going to do with the character. Expect a finished sheet sometime saturday afternoon.

[Chainlinc3]

Weeell, I'm looking at this Sunday night, and assuming something or another came up. Just get to it when you can get to it. I'm still expecting sheets from several more people, so, there's no rush yet.

[Dreamless Days]

Early warning. I won't be in a place where I can type on the 22nd - 24th (I'll be in Video Game Heaven becoming the new Super Ultimate Gamer of the Year), just in case the RP is up and running by then.

[Chainlinc3]

I sincerely hope it's up by then, but I think we can deal with you missing for three days.

Also, I'm about to update the first post with some additional info people have requested via PM. As always with me: you don't have to read it, I just like to provide as much info as possible so people have access to it if they want it.

[Crazy Hobo]

Matt, I'm currently rummaging around in my brain for some ideas for a cs, just so you know. I don't know when exactly I'll finish it, though.

[Chainlinc3]

...Derp. Just realized that I forgot to include a section for appearance on the CS. Editing that now-- either a picture or a description will do.

Oh, and I'm actually doing serious work on my CS finally. So, I'll add a character section to the first post shortly.

Final note: Can I get a head's up on everyone's status? Because I know I had a fair amount of interest, but I haven't heard any activity recently, so, just wanted to check in with you guys.

[Buzzwulf]

My status is lazy, but still interested

[The Calamity]

I'd have to agree. My status is lazy with a side of being selectively busy. I am very interested in the plot of this thread but I haven't been able to find the time to work on anything just yet. It goes without saying that my real life has been getting in the way, for the better I might add. As it were, don't count me out just yet.

[Selothi]

Um, recent development: I'll be working away from home and with very little access to the internet until/unless I get a laptop, which isn't a guarantee; from the beginning August onwards. I might have to opt out of this one, or at least it's beginning.

[Crazy Hobo]

I'm still interested, but like everyone else I'm being lazy. I have a character in mind and everything, but I've just been slacking.

[Chainlinc3]

Oh, laziness. 'Tis a familiar companion of mine. xD

Well, I'll probably start nagging you guys sooner or later, so don't delay TOO long, mmk?

@Selothi--
Bummer! There should be places to jump in mid-way, but we'll see. Check back in when you know more, yes? ^_^

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