True Blood/Supernatural Crossover RP

[Somniloquist]

First off: Familiarity with these series is not a requirement, it's just super helpful, and I hope using them will generate interest that might otherwise lack. I'd be happy to explain whatever needs to be explained about this.

Things those familiar with the series in question might want to know, though: I've stopped my canon basis for True Blood around the end of season 3, and my basis for Supernatural around the end of season 5. Beyond that, I've made alterations. In short, there are three different breeds of vampires now, one resembling the Supernatural type, another resembling the True Blood type, and a third having Vampire: the Masquerade style blood magic abilities (with fewer restrictions, re: type of magic). I've changed a good number of details about these, but I'm not sure of the etiquette about big, detailed lists here, so I'll put a link to a blog post I made there. Please be aware that it contains brief, but frank and slightly playful mention of sexual details, so if you're not in a position to read things like that, don't bother clicking; just ask me! That's fine by me.

I'll explain other character types in depth as necessary, but, real quick. . .werewolves and fairies err on the side of True Blood, angels and demons on the side of Supernatural. All are likely to have some alterations or details added, though. Demons, for example, exude a corrupting energy that can be sensed by some character types. This effects certain things around them. . .for example, milk will go sour a little bit sooner, metal will rust out a little sooner, wallpaper peel, etc., etc.. I'm not sure what practical use this has--honestly, I just think it's a cool, subtle display of wickedness.

If there are any more setting/universe related questions you might have that aren't answered here or in my character's profile, feel free to ask me about them by any means you'd like. I always love questions! It means people care about getting it right and contributing to the story.

Now, specific ideas! These are honestly going to be a little thin. I do my best plotting when I know what character I'm working with. Just trying to plant seeds.

Maxwell wants his teaching job back. Maybe he meets up with a relative of one of the donors who called for him to be fired, and ends up convincing them to sway that relative's opinion. This may or may not involve romantic content, depending on how it plays out. Not really bothered about the gender of the character for this one.

A vampire of Max's magic-using bloodline has not been properly taught to utilize their powers by their maker, either because they're just a deadbeat or because they've died. Carmelia foists this vampire on Maxwell as an apprentice, since he's capable and does enjoy teaching. This is likely to be a tense RP, in the beginning, because Max doesn't really like the thought of being responsible for a 'little monster', which is how he thinks of fledgling vampires. I'd prefer a female character for this role, but could be convinced to do something else.

A hunter! In the Supernatural sense, that is. Meaning, someone who's made a personal decision to hunt 'monsters', or came into it because that's what their family did. They're not affiliated with any official organization, they're not handed jobs as a rule, and they don't make money from hunting in and of itself. I'm mostly looking for an antagonist in this role, someone who hunts down Max (perhaps for a murder he committed but wasn't connected to ~6 months prior; perhaps just for being a prominent vampire; perhaps due to his romantic involvement with Dean Winchester) and gets the upper hand, but doesn't succeed in killing him. I may be convinced to put him in a situation more favorable with a hunter, though. Maybe he ends up helping them on a job simply for being in the right place at the right time, or maybe they happen across him while he's doing his work, which closely resembles hunting.


Casual scenes are easily welcome. Meet Max in a cafe, in a bookstore, in the grocery store, etc.. These can often result in fulfilling long-term scenes if executed right, and/or if the characters hit it off, so they're fine by me.

[Digital Muse]

I'd be interested in joining this. I'll have to read up on the two shows, as I haven't watched them.

I love modern fantasy so long as it isn't cheesed out.

[Somniloquist]

It depends on your definition of cheesy, really! Both have their elements of it, but in my opinion, it kind of goes with the territory. They both have a sense of humor about it (and I really like True Blood's sense of humor with it), so that makes a difference, I think.

[Syrena]

Vampires caught my eye! I'd love to be part of this; although, I'm not very familiar with True Blood or Supernatural.

[Somniloquist]

OK, I guess I should do a quick thing explaining both, and the role they play. True Blood's really the main basis, with regard to atmosphere and things like that. Some Supernatural elements are basically just tacked on because someone playing Dean insisted we play together, so I obliged and ahh, now we're RP soulmates, ha-ha.

It's also becoming clear that I should learn how to plot for larger groups. =/ I've been stuck doing one on one for years so that's where my brain goes (even if it's not a romance plot, which the ones I mentioned wouldn't be). I do generally prefer more subtle conflicts than big 'AND A BUNCH OF PEOPLE DIE' type things, yet get bored by political conspiracy type plots, so. . .what's that leave for groups? Partying? Hah.

I did have an idea once of RPing a kind of panel TV show, y'know, where they all get together and discuss controversial topics. . .Max would be the token vampire, naturally. I've wanted to do a story arc where he became famous, because his personality type is suited to it, but considering other plans I have for him, it'd be unwise to do that just yet. Unless maybe I make those plans into a strange 'disappearance' for him. . .suppose I could swing it.

Anyway! I was supposed to describe True Blood's role in the RP! Basically, the idea of that show is that synthetic blood was invented for use in hospitals and whatnot (it's a Japanese invention, in case that's important) and, a few years later, vampires orchestrated 'the Great Revelation', appearing on television, radio, etc., and telling the world that they existed. They claimed they no longer represented a threat to humans, and wanted to live as equal members of society.

This went over better in some countries than in others. They tend to be killed on sight in countries with a heavy religious presence (not just Middle Eastern countries, but Italy, too, are mentioned specifically), but in the US, it's become a giant debate. Although they've been out around four or five years (for the purposes of this RP), and some basic protections for them exist (eg, hunting them is illegal), they still want things like the right to marry, the right to inherit property, they want anti-discrimination laws passed so they can hold a variety of jobs, etc.. For future reference, vampires living among humans are said to be 'mainstreaming'.

The show has fun with this. . .a lot of the anti-vampire movement/sentiment is modeled after anti-gay organizations and spots in the US, which is sort of a distasteful parallel I guess, but it's done in fun, in my opinion, rather than with the belief that they're creating serious political commentary. What this means, most importantly, is that there are religious groups formed specifically against vampires, the most prominent being the Fellowship of the Sun. While these organizations will go on TV news stations and deny that they want to kill all vampires, and claim they simply want them to live separate from human society again, they really do like doing so. It's not unheard for them to subdue a vampire with silver, then have a big gathering where they have all the members and their families stay in the church overnight, and they strap the vampire to an outdoor altar just before sunrise to watch the sun burn them up, presumably feeling it as a religious experience showing the 'power of God'.

Another interesting thing--though I think it's made a little too extreme in the show, so I've toned it down a little in RP land--is that vampire blood acts as a drug when consumed by humans. It gives them preternatural strength, speed and agility, enhanced senses, and increased sexual performance. Using too much of it tends to make someone especially prone to violence, though, and apparently withdrawal from 'V' can be fatal. There's a lot of mess where the trade of this is concerned. It's illegal. Sometimes vampires will give it willingly for the money, and sometimes these vampires are in positions of authority among other vampires, which makes things messy. Some vampires consider it sacrilege to allow their blood to be used in that way. (Some think very highly of their status, obviously, haha.) I mention this mostly for the threat of drainers, though--groups of humans who'll manage to tie a vampire up in silver and forcibly take their blood. It gives vampires a reason to be a little wary of humans, rather than being supreme beings of power, which I like.

Another thing worth mentioning is the phenomenon of vampire bars, which are vampire-owned clubs and the like that openly welcome the patronage of vampires, and welcome humans to mingle with them. They'll sell True Blood from special heated cases and all. Feeding on humans in public is illegal, and they'll have all kinds of signs around proclaiming that, but it's pretty common for vampires to sneak into the bathroom or a nearby alley for a bite. They usually attract people who want to do something 'dangerous', or people who are really into vampires, derogatorily called 'fangbangers'. That's a stereotype, of course. . .people could go to them just because they liked it. Probably worth noting that this is not remotely Maxwell's scene, as he'd much rather be in the company of humans than vampires, and he thinks vampire bars are romanticizing danger in a really irresponsible way.

Considerable changes I've made to the canon are as follows. One. . .I mentioned multiple breeds of vampires, and there's only one in the show. I have integrated them into the, mm, workings of society, though. The 'lowest' kind of vampire is considered incapable of mainstreaming. They have entire mouths full of sharp teeth that descend when they're about to feed, rather than the classier couple of fangs had by the other breeds. They're a little weaker, too, though stronger than humans, and tend to live together in nests. The powers-that-be among vampires (known as the Authority in the show) have declared them a threat to the mainstreaming effort, and do their best to keep them out of the public eye. The most extreme form of this is killing off nests when they're discovered, and that's sort of a controversial directive. . .it's officially sanctioned by the Authority, but they'll often deny it, and not all sheriffs (the name for vampires controlling a particular area) choose that method. Directly related to my character, though, Carmelia does choose that method, and will occasionally send him to do that job.

The second type of vampire is the standard one, the one that revealed its existence on TV, and the one that holds most positions of power. Two fangs, all of that. Your run-of-the-mill vampire. They can subsist on synthetic blood, but often choose not to do so. (Which is why I don't roll my eyes at its existence, really; I think it's more interesting that a vampire that has the option not to feed on humans will usually still do so, because of a predatory urge.)

The third type is the magic-using type, and Max is one of those. They're forbidden to come clean about that aspect to the public, and encouraged to either stay hidden by posing as human, or to take part in the Revelation, but allow humans to think they're no different than standard vampires. Not allowing for the exposure of magic use to the general public is considered important because allowing humans to recognize magic use risks outing other supernatural creatures who use it as well, which isn't their place, and would cause them all kinds of trouble.

True Blood's reckoning of werewolves is also abided by, but it's pretty standard. They shift from human to wolf and back, with no in between form, when they're born--meaning, both their parents were werewolves. The half-wolf form comes in when a human suffers a bite from a werewolf and is turned in that way. Born weres are normally inducted into packs, while bitten ones are either killed on sight because they're monsters, or considered the responsibility of the pack to keep hidden (depends how nice the packmaster is, really). While there's a bit of mutual racism between vampires and werewolves as a group, they have no history of 'warring' or anything like that, no special conflict. They just don't like each other much. Mostly it seems like that's because werewolves consider themselves more 'human' than vampires, while vampires think changing into an animal makes them lowly. I honestly don't have much personal interest in werewolves and haven't had any with a prominent role in my story yet, but I guess I could be swayed if an idea rubbed me just the right way. And, of course, if this becomes a larger RP than something I'm involved in, people can play whatever they want!

Having rambled on that long, the Supernatural elements. . .err. There was some crazy weather and weird stories about a year and a couple months back, related to the impending Apocalypse (which was, naturally, thwarted). I think that's the biggest 'event' related to that show's canon that would have to be canon for this RP, too.

Most of what comes from Supernatural is their take on demons and angels.

Demons are (spoiler alert!) former humans who, while being tortured in Hell, agreed to turn around and torture others, if it meant that the torture would stop for them. They're gradually corrupted until there's nothing left of their corporeal form. Then, they're sometimes sent to Earth to do various things (sometimes those 'things' just seem to be 'possess a human and wreak havoc with them until their body's completely burnt out, just for funsies'. Their 'form' is as black smoke (a really ridiculous amount of it!) that possesses human hosts. To be possessed, a human generally has to be in an emotionally vulnerable state somehow. Possessed humans are impervious to most kinds of damage, as long as they're possessed; any damage they suffered will show up in the host once the demon leaves the body, be it by choice or exorcism. They also have considerable strength and speed, as well as telekinesis, and other qualities I'm probably forgetting (Supernatural stuff isn't really my department =(). They're vulnerable to holy water, pure iron and salt. That is, putting lines of salt in doorways and windows will prevent demons from getting in, and putting a ring of salt around a demon will trap them within it. There's also a big symbol known as a devil's trap that will, well, trap them inside that. Various charms can protect people against possession, as well as various symbols. Dean, for instance, has an anti-possession tattoo. Demons can possess vampires, too, (which wasn't done in the series but it's something that has/can happen in RP land) which is generally considered to be really bad news. Especially if they're of the magic using variety. You've gotta think it would just be an orgy of ultraviolence, then 'refueling' on the nearest human, then more ultraviolence. So basically, come along and punch Max in the head if he forgets to wear his anti-possession charm! Demon blood is really potent to vampires, especially those of the magic-using variety. It'll make them feel very strong and especially violence-prone. It's generally a bad idea to let a vampire have any.

The true form of angels, meanwhile, is impossible for humans to tolerate. Seeing their true form makes their eyes burn out (and if they look for too long, their brain's done, too), hearing their true voice threatens to make them deaf, etc.. They can occupy human vessels that allow them to walk among humans, but these are special people, usually pious, and they have to consent to being used in this way. Their powers include, but are not limited to, teleportation, enhanced physical attributes, being able to track people just by being told about them, being able to kill lower-level demons simply by touching their hosts, being impervious to damage (and it doesn't hurt their vessel, either), and just. . .all kinds of shit that I forget. They're really powerful, but they don't come to Earth without some kind of mission from Heaven. Most angels are rather sexless, some aren't. . .I don't think anything special happens if their vessel begets children or is impregnated with them in it, though. It hasn't been addressed in the show, but for the purposes of RP, I'm erring on the side of "nothing special". Same with demons, by the way. Crazy story for the conception, but the baby's just human.

God. . .I can really info dump. =( That's why I didn't do it initially. Sorry.

[Syrena]

xD! Info dumps aren't always a bad thing.

And, in this case, it is nice to have some background information. I've only watched one episode of True Blood. Any chance I had of watching Supernatural went out the window when I caught the last bit of an episode with giant, creepy, crawly, scary spiders. I just can't do spiders! (Or bugs, really.)

Right. This might have been in your info and I simply missed the connection--if so, I do apologize about bugging you about it--but can you elaborate a little more on the Authority? Is it a bit like a council with a couple of rulers passing down laws? Or something?

[Somniloquist]

Yeah, it's a council. . .I think it has thirteen members, or something? The last season of True Blood dealt with them a lot. The guy at the head of the council was Roman in the beginning of the season (and so, would still be him for the purposes of RP), and he's the one who thought it absolutely necessary for vampires' survival that they come out. There's a 'vampire Bible' and stuff and. . .oh man, to be honest, I found it so, so corny. Like, when the words 'vampire Bible' popped out of the first character's mouth, I thought it was a joke. But, not really, it became a serious plot point. I don't plan on legitimizing that in my RP.

Supernatural, I almost didn't watch. The pilot episode had a lot of silly crap re: women. . .like, it kills their mother, it kills the one guy's girlfriend. Because clearly the only way to motivate men is to kill ~their~ women! I watched it, my eyes rolled out of my head, I didn't bother watching any more. Then I met this RPer I mentioned, developed a powerful crush on Dean, and that motivated me to watch it, haha. So, I think it's best viewed with a slightly less critical eye. It's still fun. Only the one episode had to do with bugs, that I recall, and episodes like that are easy to skip, I think.

[Syrena]

A "Vampire Bible!" Really? I'm not even sure what to think of that. It's just... Well, I don't think I'll even go there. But, seriously, a vampire bible actually became a plot point? What will this world think of next! lol

One of my good friends is very much into Supernatural. She keeps telling me about it on the phone. I listen to all these conversations about how awesome the show is (and how hot Dean is), and then she tries to talk me into watching an episode with her. All I can think about is spiders. Those spiders really sent me for a loop!

And I can't seem to grow out of the fear. Perhaps, one day, I'll stop being such a coward.

[Somniloquist]

If you do decide to watch one, watch 'Yellow Fever' from season 4. It's my favorite because it's hilarious. And while context helps for some of the scary things he sees, it's not really necessary.

EDIT: I've just noticed the 'private' RP forum better suits what I'm used to doing. . .but I've wanted to get out of what I'm 'used' to doing for a while now, so I'm not sure if that means I want the topic moved. =/ I'm going to have to brood over bigger stories that could be done in a way that's interesting to me. I've been doing an RP involving Dean and this demon-possessed vampire on another site, and that's been enjoyable, so I know I can enjoy RPs that aren't just one-on-one. (PROTIP: Don't give vampires demon blood. Even the nice ones go nuts!) I'd be willing to have him join here, too, but I don't want to jump the gun again, as I've asked him to join two forums before and all of the RP prospects for me/us there fizzled out once he did, so it seems silly.

I think maybe, if anyone who's posted here already or may do so in the future, has any idea of what sort of character they might like to play, that could help. I'm sorry, I know it's awkward that I've got this fancy setting I want other people to come in on, but I've got no plots for it. I don't want to fall back on my usual one-on-one RPs, though, so I do want to see if we can figure something out. . .or maybe I'll get a bolt of inspiration? Either way, I think if I wanna keep jabbering on about the shows involved, I should probably make a topic in the entertainment forum, haha.

[Syrena]

I will definitely keep that in mind!

So, out of curiosity, what idea were you thinking of going with? Any strong feelings. And what about you Digital Muse? I don't really want to throw anything out without hearing from others first. I'm so used to private role plays that I'm afraid I'll jump the gun!

Edit--

I think I posted just as you sent your edit information. Oops. Now, I suppose, it's time for my own edits. Unfortunately, I don't have very much to add that is helpful. At least at the moment. I'll have to think for a little bit.

On a character note, I kind of wanted to play a vampire. (Yeah, I know, that's totally helpful information...) Maybe if Digital Muse is still in and knows what she'd like to play, we could all start developing a plot or something.

Right. I'll think and see if I can add anything useful to this edit.

[Somniloquist]

Mm, did you see my edit? I just did it a couple minutes ago. I don't think the ideas I posted are suited to group play, unfortunately, I was just really tired when I joined the forum and wanted to get all useful threads posted before I went to bed. I really want to dip my toe into group play, though. . .my character's linked on my profile, or you can click here if you haven't read it.

I'm thinking right now, and all I can consider is how I've often insinuated there's a student group at the school that supports Maxwell. . .perhaps they finally get their shit together enough to hold some kind of rally? That's a poor idea, though, because it doesn't open up an opportunity for anyone else to play supernatural characters, and it puts the other players in a decidedly subservient role. I can tell now that I need something to change my way of thinking! Maybe, if either of you were thinking of playing a more powerful character (maybe a vampire in a position of authority?), or some other important person. . .how might they use a vampire like Maxwell? Despite his recent difficulties, generally speaking, he's been very successful in his mainstreaming efforts. He also responds better to authority than many vampires of his breed. Most of the magic-using vamps think that acknowledging authority--even 'The Authority'--is beneath them. . .as Max did, really. . .but he's been convinced otherwise recently. Even if it's because Carmelia threatens to have him sealed in a silver-wrapped casket, and buried where they'll build a Wal-Mart over him if he doesn't do what she says, ha-ha. Apparently she thinks that adds to the threat. "HUMANS WILL BE BUYING TWINKIES OVER YOUR STARVING BODY." "Actually, Hostess went out of business." ". . .human-loving scum."

[Syrena]

xD! They still sell Little Debbie which is a bit like Hostess. So, humans will definitely be buying Hostess like goodies over his starving body among other things. If such a thing were to happen, of course.

Perhaps, something happens at Maxwell's boarding house? His place is supposed to be a sanctuary for students. A place for peace and quiet without any pressure or demands. But one day all hell breaks loose. Maybe some students turn up dead or evidence of supernatural murders is littering the garage. Whatever happens, it would be an excuse to have multiple people crawling about--vampires, ordinary humans, werewolves, hunters, and what have you.

I thought I would just throw that out there because I'd like to see a new group role play pop out of the woodwork. (Don't get my wrong. I absolutely adore private role plays. But I've been dying to try a successful group role play for a while.)

Anyway, personally, I might like to play a vampire in position of authority. Maybe even acting on behalf of The Authority. I know that isn't very helpful information wise; although, maybe, throwing random tidbits of information out will help. You never know.

[Somniloquist]

Hmm, unfortunately that's not plausible because Max doesn't have a giant 'boarding house', it's just his personal four-bedroom home (discounting the basement room for himself). For now, only two of those rooms are filled; one's Dean's, the other a guy named Elias. They're both player characters who aren't disposable that way. Amusingly, they're also not students, but that's because all of the student RPs fizzled out. . .I should technically look for more people to live in his home, but I'm so burnt out on those scenes. It's one of the few ideas I had that seemed to have a good plot to go with it, so it's the one I got the most responses to. It's failed more times than it's succeeded, so it's really hard for me to get excited about it again, even though I should repeat it. Max would want as many people taking up those rooms as possible.

EDIT: We could go somewhere with supernatural murders though. Max's work generally goes in such a way that he might piss off certain people, who might try to tarnish his reputation. . .maybe a vampire who finds out he's involved so intimately with a hunter, and feels he's betraying his kind by it. I usually figured I'd go the other way around, and want a hunter trying to protect Dean's honor, haha, but that could work, too. But yes, perhaps werewolves and shifters and the like start showing up dead around his property, because clearly 'that's what he does now'.

With regard to playing a powerful vampire, I think that would contribute to my 'Max gets famous' arc--and that wouldn't necessarily be so Maxwell-centric as it seems. You have to consider, why would your vampire want so badly to put a likable vampire face out there, and associate it with herself? I do think that could be something interesting. It's probably worth noting that he'd be a little reluctant to help out anything too shady, like killing humans regularly or something like that. He does genuinely like humans, and spending time with Dean has definitely leaned him a little more toward thinking life as a vampire is a privilege, not a right. . .so, he's coming to believe that vampires who don't even want to curb their murderous inclinations have no inherent right to life.

[Digital Muse]

Just read through the posts thus far and I really like the supernatural murders idea. If there is a Vampire hopped up on Demon Blood committing those murders, that might bring in a Vampire from the Authority (perhaps a Sheriff) to tag Max with tracking down and stopping said Vampire. This could take our characters through out the 'world' searching for clues and interacting in Max's life.

On a character for myself, I have several ideas in order of preference; an Angel (of a very low order in order to make he/she playable), an Eastern Vampire from the World of Darkness vein or a Were-X and lastly a plain old human,

[Somniloquist]

I was thinking that the vampire doing those murders would be someone whose 'work' he'd dealt with before. Basically, most of Maxwell's job is killing the monsters vampires make. A lot of vampires will use magic to either create a monster on their own, tame an existing monster, or mutate a human (usually their unfortunate day-servant) into some terrible beast, all in the interest of protecting their home and/or resting place. Once, one of 'em animated a tree in a park just to see if they could (and 'just to see if they could' is a very, very popular motivation too, much to Maxwell's dismay). So, he's killed this person's prized experiment, and they start watching him to see what kind of dirt they can dig up. They discover (or, at least, suspect) his relationship with Dean, and that both furthers their anger, and gives them the idea of what to do. Since clearly he's an honorary hunter now, it's time to leave the corpses of "monsters" on his property!

As it is now, I don't know how an angel would work in this particular plot. There would need to be some other plot to bring an angel into the picture. Well, other than a canon character for the show, anyhow. It's sort of funny how I'm much more interested in the Supernatural canon characters than the True Blood ones. I'd be willing to try and figure a plot out, but I don't think it's this one.

I think a were would be the most useful, either a packmaster or someone who works for one. Most of the murders would probably be weres, because they have the benefit of leading full lives. . .that is, they're not just monsters hidden away somewhere waiting to kill people. They have a family, friends, a job in the public eye, etc.. This person would probably want Max to seem like the biggest hypocrite possible, and probably also doesn't think much of weres anyway. As an aside on weres, it's probably worth mentioning the power balance in this universe, because from what I recall, it's very different in WoD based RPs. Vampires are shown as being a lot stronger than weres; a vampire made in the 1800s is shown taking on big group of them, and coming out decidedly on top, killing a couple and wounding others. As vampires go, that's not even very old, so I'm guessing their superiority to humans is more subtle. Werewolves are portrayed as going into the military or into professional sports fairly often, because of that physical superiority.

An aside to mentioning the military--vampires made a sort of agreement upon coming out, that they would not join in human conflicts (eg, not join the military) and they wouldn't allow experimentation on their person. So, while weres would be represented in all branches of the military, vampires are forbidden to join (probably more by the Authority than the US government).

What I'm getting at is, werewolves are much better in a fight than humans, but are very unlikely to be enough to overwhelm anything but a fledgling vampire (and, probably, the lower breeds).

If you went for playing a human, perhaps the normal sibling of a shapeshifter or something would be interesting. I'm inclined to suggest they had no idea their sister/brother wasn't human, so they'd be demanding to know the reason for his death.

I guess you could also play a human detective or some-such, but I'd rather this be an ordeal more to do with the supernatural community than human. I'm OK with putting Maxwell's reputation with 'his own kind' through the ringer, but I think he's suffered enough with regard to humans.

I'd need to think of another vampire who might come into it. . .Maxwell's direct superior is an NPC that's already been pretty well-established, so I can't change that role to someone else. And the hope is that Maxwell will be able to keep things under wraps enough that no one higher up needs to be involved. Maybe they just happen to be around on bad luck, though? Max lives somewhat far out of town, so I don't know how likely it is that someone would just 'happen by' his house. . .hmm.

EDIT: Just realized I forgot about the demon blood angle you mentioned. Having so recently done an RP involving demon blood myself, it might be a little strange to bring it in again so soon. It would beg the question, what is it with demons and being fed on by vampires, lately? You'd think it was deliberate. Which, I guess, it could be--and that's a different story, could be a separate story.

DOUBLE EDIT: OK, so Dean and I have been talking a little, and I think we've figured something interesting out. I honestly like it more than the original 'dead supernatural things' idea (though I'd consider doing that story at a later date). Honestly, I've done enough damage to Maxwell's reputation in RP land lately, and I want to try and build it up, if anything, not demolish it. At least where humans are concerned. And that would probably get noticed by humans.

OK, so, on that demon blood angle. . .how to start. . .OK, so, a demon (in a human) begins visiting a vampire bar, and acting in such a way that encourages vampires to bite them. Demons are chaotic creatures; they just like sowing mayhem, it's fun for them.

So, the vampire will bite them, and then turn around and go ballistic, killing people in terrible ways. They wouldn't just drink from them, might not even do that at all. They'd be literally tearing them apart and like. . .ripping out hearts and just. . .horrific, sadistic things. The demon would probably take the vampire somewhere away from the bar to bite them, so they could return to the bar later without arousing too much suspicion. Not all vampires are familiar with demons, so they'd be unaware of what happened. They'd do this a few times, and Maxwell's sheriff would be put on the case. . .perhaps some of the killings bleed over into another sheriff's jurisdiction, so they'd have to work together on it.

I'd be willing to write Carmelia for this RP, though admittedly I won't dare promise much with her. I'm not only unused to writing women, but unused to writing any character in a position of authority. . .I might make out alright though, I've written her in bits and pieces before and it was passable.

The idea with the demon and human, and how they evade detection/seeming strange, is that the demon and human actually enjoy a more symbiotic relationship than is really common. Carmelia/her regular vampire detective types she has working for her are probably competent enough to track down 'the culprit' but, upon questioning them, would find what seemed to be a normal human. They'd glamour them, and get answers that didn't help explain the situation at all. The truth would be that the demon's presence, lying dormant in them so that the usual signs would be absent, prevented glamouring from working at all. But they'd know how to make it seem that they've been glamoured. Suspecting something fishy was up, Carmelia would call Max in to investigate, because magic-using vampires are sensitive to certain energies and things that normal vampires can't detect.

So, all of this rambling leaves room for another Sheriff, as I've mentioned, and. . .what else? Obviously it would be cool if someone played the demon, but since you're both unfamiliar with Supernatural, I'm not sure it's fair to ask. Also, I don't expect they'd have a direct role in the RP until later. Worse comes to worst, it'll be an NPC of mine or Dean's (or we'll share that job).

Maybe a human detective? Or, as I suggested for the other idea, a relative or friend of a victim. . .someone determined enough to find people who matter to air their grievances to.

YET ANOTHER EDIT: Forgot to mention, the vampire bar this revolves around wouldn't be in Crystal Springs proper, Crystal Springs is basically too much of a 'nice' town to have one. So, it would be in the next town/city over, one that's also in Carmelia's jurisdiction.

[SolidariGee]

I have a character in mind for this role play that may not be what you're looking for.

This character's mother became a vampire prior to the discovery of True Blood, and left her son to ensure his safety from her needs. However, now that True Blood is available the character is confused why his mother has not come back. He begins his search by frequenting vampire bars, but after a close call he decides this is too risky. He eventually meets up with the hunters and thinks that his best chance (and safest) is with them.

Despite not being combat oriented like the hunters he is extremely knowledgeable in the occult lore of his mother's people. He knows these oral teachings from the stories his mother used to tell him, and they have proven to give unique insights to the hunters as they have a different cultural perspective than the Western understanding of the supernatural as somehow immutably alien from the natural world.

Eventually, the hunters may begin to (accurately) suspect that the character is hiding something from them. The character is the descendant of a line of witch doctors/shamans (there is not easily translatable word), but did not finish his training with his mother because she was turned into a vampire and had to leave (she was attempting to act as a hunter but things went wrong and she ended up becoming a vampire after several years of hunting). The character, due to not having fully mastered his abilities, is a danger to all those around him. His very existence attracts demons, angels, and other spirits. Sometimes only he can see them. This constant interaction with otherworldly forces degrades his clarity and he slowly loses touch with reality. As he invokes more of his power, his ability to perceive what is real and imaginary fades. Until he finds his mother or another person to guide him, he is a threat to everyone.

His abilities are mostly subtle and do not have overt displays (like a fireball). Rather, he is extremely accurate in his intuitions, and can invoke powerful dream related powers. He can also blur the line between reality and delusion. Every moment without his mother's guidance brings him further down a path of Chaos.

[Somniloquist]

I'm not sure about the attracting demons and angels part, I think that would contradict the way demons and angels are executed in this setting (since they favor Abrahamic religions' reckoning on what those things are). Spirits could be plausible, though, and there's room for other kinds of, ah. . .supernatural things. . .from other cultures, they're just called different things. I know Supernatural's touched on some of them, but sometimes I'm not too keen on their interpretations/'creative license' with various bits of lore. I modeled the lower breed of vampires off of theirs, but they're shown walking in the sun and drinking liquor, and I did away with that nonsense (I have strong feelings about daywalking vampires, OK!?). I know they did kitsune once and it was stupid, I don't even know what it had in common with the folklore at all. Judging from the Wikipedia article, I'd be interested in certain uses of them, if desired, since they do take human form (and even possess people; I didn't know that part!). They also called creatures leviathan but I have no fuckin' clue what possessed them to do so, because, again. . .no idea what they had in common with leviathan at all.

I'm honestly not too familiar with worldwide lore, so we'd have to discuss particular incidents as they occurred. Basically, there's a line to be walked between something coming off as cartoonish or corny, and while a little bit of that is acceptable, too much can kind of ruin the mood (for me, at least). Aside from angels and demons, don't worry too much if Supernatural has "done them" or not, and contradicting that. Dean and I agree that sometimes their take on a particular creature is stupid, haha (fairies are another one, by the way).

The general concept of the character is interesting, and I'd be glad to RP with such a character, but I'm not sure how he'd become a part of either of the plots we've got in mind. Without anything better to consider, I suppose he could be swept in as a bystander. Alternatively, if he has dream-related premonitions, perhaps he can recognize one of the characters from a dream and feel compelled to walk up and proclaim something drastic?

[SolidariGee]

It's great to see someone who dislikes cultural appropriation. I'm actually half Lao and I was going to incorporate the stories that my mother used to tell me as a child. Don't worry, this character is nothing like me, I just wanted an outlet for the stories I grew up with. It doesn't necessarily need to involve these spirits from her side of the world, I just think having someone in the group with this knowledge could be useful. Like,

"The vampire seems to only target attractive men... My mother once told me of the phi mae. I can make a token of a wooden penis and its magic will keep her at bay... hopefully."

Or

[A strange spirit slithers into the room and entwines itself around a hunter. The dreaming human didn't stand a chance. Then, like the sound of thunder, a wooden stick struck iron and the serpentine monster became powerless. It twisted and snapped its head, but it could harm no one.]

Things like that.

I am also half Chinese Canadian, and know lots about traditional Chinese folklore too. I don't want these cultures to be appropriated, but I feel like the solutions of these cultures for the supernatural could be integrated into the setting, even if it is dealing with Western creatures. If that makes sense. I totally respect if you're not comfortable with that though!

And I'm definitely open to changing things up with this character. I would definitely be able to play plot pusher for you too. You could tell me something you want to happen, and I could have the character have a dream that could be interpreted (not like an exact vision) of what you want to happen. This doesn't ever need to happen, I can make the dreams so vague that I can explain them as true later.

As for spirits, demons, and angels. in my mother's culture they're all just called "phi" so I could just call anything supernatural phi, and various kinds of things would be attracted to him. If that works for you, you could choose what is and what isn't attracted to him.

My idea though is that it could be possible that his mother drank the demon's blood, and that's why she hasn't returned to him. His/her powers will mostly be reminiscent of a Taoist priest(ess) of traditional Chinese folklore and shamans of the Hmong and ethnic Lao. Very subtle things, nothing like telekinesis or fireballs haha.

[Somniloquist]

Well, the thing with being in hunters' storylines is that, so far, Dean's the only hunter in the RP at all. Maxwell's work resembles hunting, but it isn't. He'll tag along on the occasional job with Dean, if it seems that things would be a lot easier with him around, or if the creature seems especially deadly, but they're not much of a group. The RP I'm doing with that demon-possessed vampire I mentioned (I did mention it, right?) is meant to turn out with them all hunter-buddy at some point, but it's probably going to take ages to get there, and I'm not sure he'd be interested in joining here. We write long posts, but we still play predominantly over a chat service. Even without that in consideration, from what I understand of Dean, he's not especially comfortable working in a group. . .any more than one other person and he starts to feel like his focus is being scattered.

His mother consuming the demon's blood would be likely to make her more conspicuous, rather than disappearing. I mean, Max is pretty disciplined, but he wasn't at all prepared for what demon's blood did to him. The feeling of power and the compulsion toward violence is overwhelming. It was a show of his discipline that he was able to point that violence toward his work, rather than trying to kill whoever was closest. He still needed an outlet for that violence, though, and if an acceptable one hadn't been in immediate range, it's hard to say what he would have done. While hunters do have considerable discipline of their own, your character's mother would be a much younger vampire than Max, too, and so unlikely to have quite his level of self-control. Something to consider, at least. . .I do think that his mother drinking the demon's blood is a good way to make that character relevant to our story, and a good way to extend it in another direction a little bit.

I see we have protagonists galore here. . .anyone game for playing an antagonist? We'll NPC them if not, but it could be interesting.

[SolidariGee]

We could use this character as an antagonist then.

He didn't find his mother in time (she was actually just dead) and his condition progressed. He now cannot distinguish reality from irrealis, and he cannot distinguish human from spirit or monster. He has lost clarity of mind completely.

A demon may have whispered in his ear that Dean and Max are actually demons that have stolen his mother from him (maybe they even killed her). And now he is out to get them and take his mother back from them (even though they don't have her), and he can't be reasoned with.

He doesn't fit the typical antagonist role because he is technically an innocent that is really just being manipulated, but at the same time he is highly dangerous, and cannot really be reasoned with. Their typical tactics and weapons won't work against him because his brand of magic is something they aren't familiar with at all.

It will be like a knife trying to cut water. Dean and Max will have to come up with innovative ways of defeating him, because if they ignore him they will end up dead. The problem is, they already have enough problems with demons and vampires. This kid will seem like a lower priority, but he becomes more and more dangerous every moment.

How does that sound?

[Somniloquist]

So he'd be impervious to damage? Hmm, that sounds like more power than you'd originally planned to give him. Unless I'm mistaken?

[SolidariGee]

No, he wouldn't be impervious to damage. It was an analogy lol.

It's more like, Dean is used to BANG DEAD scenarios, and this character would never even be within shooting range. Instead s/he would curse him from afar or send demon cats after him. Things like that.

Maybe haunt him in his dreams so he couldn't sleep and he'd be fighting vampires without sleep. Things like that.

[Somniloquist]

Ooh, oh, right on. Because honestly, my original thought about that was, "Well, why wouldn't Max just chop him up?" The usual, mm, method of Supernatural gets a little funny that way, really. There are a lot of creatures portrayed as "you can only kill it by ___", but that's operating within human limitations. Which is why I like to joke that taking Max along for the ride would make things much less interesting. . .he'd be fast and strong enough to just kind of pulverize an enemy into goo, and then it'd be sort of, "Hm, usually I'd have to ~consult the journal~, but I see you've taken care of it, so, uh. . .guess we should hit the bar, huh?"

So, there'd be an element of their having to figure out that these misfortunes aren't happening on their own, too? That could be interesting.

[SolidariGee]

Exactly

They wouldn't even know their enemy, maybe not even until (seemingly) too late.

Eventually this kid's powers would grow very powerful. The more powerful he becomes the more detached from reality he is (others in his family line have a limit because of their complete training, and they straddle the line between worlds where he, instead, blurs them. More powerful, but it is not trained and controlled).

Phi (any supernatural entity) at this point will feel very attracted to him. And using this, and rituals, he will compel them to do his dirty work. One of these beings could be captured by Dean (who suspects that there is a link between all these things that have been hounding after him) and finds out that the character is sending these creatures and nightmares.

[Somniloquist]

OK, Dean's joined here so I'll bring his attention to this thread when he gets online, we'll see what he thinks about it.

[SolidariGee]

Already, let me know either way

[Somniloquist]

Alright, we're all agreed that seems pretty interesting. So, that's something else, at least. Gotta see how we're actually going to approach this from the angle of trying to find out about the grisly murders and all, now.

[SolidariGee]

How can I help? Feel free to pvt message me I'm excited to be in this!

[Somniloquist]

I don't think you can, I'm just waiting for input from Syrena and DigitalMuse!

[Syrena]

Is there any chance I can get a bullet point summary of the discussion? I blink and there are all these new posts! I suppose that's what happens when I step out for the weekend. lol

If no one is around to provide a quick, neat summary, I'll sit down and read everything tonight and edit this post with my input.

[Sponsored content]