Endless Sands Sign-Up

[PhoenixFlame]

What I believe Arhra is trying to say is, "Could you give us some plot info on what you intend the story to focus on, so our character backstories can have a logical reason to become involved?"

A big problem with many RPs like this is that the players build their characters before the GM runs their scenario, and unless modified retroactively, some or many of the characters literally have no need, interest, or reason to become involved in the RP. In subsequent chapters, presumably the character has already become acquainted with the others and has a reason to continue working with them, but this may not be the case at first contact. If one can't adequately become involved, it makes for a very lame story.

[Translucent History]

Well, Dark is gonna have to correct this I'm sure.

Atlantis

Though no true map of the bunkers ever existed, as government and nations never gave that information to everyone, there are stories of where bunkers existed. Bunkers like Cheyene Mountain were proved to exist after much searching. Places like Area S1 were also found. But the greatest legend is known as the Atlantis Bunker. Where it is, is as much legend as what is within. Fame and immense fortune could wait for those who could take on the journey to find it. But such are the things of dreams.

It's Dark's idea originally, he knows it better then I do. I hope he comes back around soon so he can add somemore to it.

[Arcanum]

Sorry, I've been busy dealing with the most annoying cold ever. Regardless, it's plot time!

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Chapter 1: The Hunt for Atlantis
Some myths are proven to be false as time goes by, others are simply forgotten. Yet there are always some stories that will be retold until the end of time. Atlantis is one such story. However, while the Atlantis of old was a fabled underwater city full of advanced technology, the current Atlantis is much more, shall we say, tangible. Like all legends, the story of the Atlantis Bunker was just rumors, supposedly created by desperate men, or thieves trying to lure naive explorers into a trap. A bunker that was buried in the Deep Sands, and filled with the most advanced technology the Old World had ever seen. Many people dismissed such rumors as fabrications and lies, but the best lies always contain a grain of truth.

Basically everyone will be starting out in the city of Lon'Din (one of the larger cities in the Sands, and Tsar-Bomba's closest neighbor). Shortly after the RP begins you will either be forced together, or band together on your own free will, in hopes of trying to find the Atlantis Bunker. However you won't be the only ones trying to do so. Professional mining teams, groups of Sand Riders, the Atomic Brotherhood, everyone wants a piece of what's in this bunker. On top of that, there's a reason that not many people ever leave the Deep Sands. Creatures mutated by radiation, genetic experiments and bio-weapons that have escaped captivity long ago and began breeding. Many of these creatures live in the Deep Sands, and are much more dangerous than anything anyone has ever seen.

----

There we go, I hope that gives you guys a good enough idea of the plot without giving away too much. Also, it answers the questions in regards to creatures and gives us liberty to start creating horrifying things of death.

[Translucent History]

Thank you Dark. I knew I was missing information. I didn't have our chat logs to look over.

Well then. That's that. We have Chapter One in the making. Let the Party......BEGIN! *dances to ol' school ol' south violin music*

[blacksands]

YAY! The Sands are back!

Lemme introduce myself:
Hello all. My name is Blacksands (doy). I played in the ES RP back when it was over at Avariel.
After following 8-bit Theater for a few years, someone (Shiney?) tosses up a link to Avariel; then after a couple years there (if you include time spent lurking...) the site dies and now I find myself back here. Funny how life works.


Let me show you my character, I'm going to be lazy and just cut/paste my original post:

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"Taelia! EAY, Lia!"

Putting on her trader's diplomatic half-smile, the woman turned to the voice. Her hand brushed past her blade's hilt, checking it's position. She probably wouldn't need it. She hadn't sensed any hostility. Still, a good instinct to have.

'Who here would call me by that na-.' Her thought was cut short. Cool brown eyes met mischievous green.
"Jakoab!" she cried. Her delicately calm expression burst into a wide, free smile.

Laughing as she rushed into his arms, she hugged her old friend, spinning around with him.
Taelia's words spilled out, "What are you doing here? How are you? God, I haven't seen you since the Academy! What have you been doing these years?"
Laughing that boyish laugh he looked back at her, "And the same back to you." His eyes glanced up at the midday sun beating down on their street. "Tell you over coffee?"

-------------

"...so when this sand-hog reaches Mor Garonne, I'm hopping off."
"Mor Garonne...," Tealia mused, her fingers idly playing with her coffee's steam trap.
"What are you going to do there?"
"Tsh! What ever I feel like," he joked, his words laced with playful, mock arrogance.
Taelia laughed. "I'd believe it."
Her friend gave a dismissive gesture. "Nah, I'm moving some bulk goods. Gonna sell those. Then I'm gonna see what's available for feelers. Word is there's growing tensions between the Atomics and the local reeve."
"Bulk goods? You a trader now?"
"Nope. Just a one time thing. Jumpin' on a crawler that's headed there anyway; why not ya know." He grinned. "Don't worry. I'm not horning in on yer racket."
She smiled. "No worries at all. I don't trade in bulk goods. Can't." Taelia slipped open the slot on the cup and brought it to her lips.
"So yer still doing speed trades, then?"
"MM-Hmm," she murmured from behind her coffee.
"So..." Jakoab paused. An uncharacteristic hesitance. "...how's your sister?"
Taelia closed the steam trap, placing the cup back on the table.
"She's...fine."
"Don't need to be an empath to know that's not the whole story."
She looked at her friend for a moment, her brown eyes studying him, before glancing away.
Her eyes took in the room, it's people, it's machines. Finally they returned to him.
"So, you're going to be working for Garonne's reeve, then?"
Jakoab's face took on a small accepting smile. She was a good friend; he wouldn't deny her a change of subject.

-------------

Taelia stood at the railing of the observation deck, taking in the view. The iron city stretched out far beneath her, glittering in the setting sun. Two orange plumes of dust extended up behind the city; propelled out by the sand-hog's tracks. They were really quite breathtaking, set against the evening sky, billowing up and out, curling in upon themselves.
'I'm really happy I got to meet Jakoab again before I left.' she thought to her self.
'I've missed his smile.' Her hands were on the railing, now. It was cold and hard and smooth. A wind from the desert found her, greeting her with it's dry copper scent, cool fingers playing with her hair.
With a movement, fast and smooth, she placed herself upon the rail. The action was quick and precise, and the balance needed to stand on the narrow bar came without effort.
It'd be night soon. The night of the wastes; with its biting wind and its ocean of stars.
One final time Taelia took in the view. 'Truly, today was a beautiful day,' and, with that thought, she extended her arms outward, bent her legs, and propelled herself out into the abyss.
As she plummeted; as her senses filled with the roar of atmosphere; as gray and gold and black/brown blurs streaked about her; as her hair danced like a flame, and her cloak rioted like a beast new to chains; a simple thought held her mind, 'How different is this from flight? True, pure, nakedly married to the wind flight?'
She passed between the tops of the city's next tallest towers; gravity's greedy hands holding her on a stone-like drop to the Earth. 'Not much different, really. Only thing is that the ground rushes past you instead of up to meet you.'
With that, though, her thoughts changed as she looked upon the ground rising to meet her.
'What would it be like to hit that? Crushed against the metal body of the city?'
The black/brown blur was more visible now, it's form a stark contrast to the ridged metallic city.
'Thc, what a ridiculous waste of life.'
The blur finally finished its graceful merging of trajectory; the great eagle was upon her now. Taelia reached out and grasped the cord about its back. The creature slowly opened its wings, and momentum started to shift. Taelia flipped her legs down, feet finding their own straps on the harness. Wings at full extension, now, they finally leveled off, and they started to move upwards.
A soft wind greeted them as they flew up and out of the steel ravine. Wheeling back around to the city's central exhaust towers, the beast's magnificent wings caught the updraft, and, corkscrewing about in the rising air, Falmae climbed the heavens.
Taelia released her grip on the harness as she leaned forward, gently placing a hand on the great beast's neck. "Turn around South, if you would."
Weight and feathers shifted, and as they left the updraft, the pair's destination lay ahead of them.
Taelia studied the horizon a second before sitting back down between the vast wings. "I hope you slept well during the day, sister. Musthrak is a long ways off."



Name: Taelia Muha'demore
Race: Mutants/Beast People
Age: 29
Gender: Female
Appearance: 175cm tall, weighs 59kg;
Smooth black hair cascades about her pretty face; she has a light/medium build;wears a clean, white cloak; a dark shirt and pants fit loosely about her body; she wears a pair of dark, snug boots;
yellow tinted goggles and a face mask hang loosely about her neck except when there's a sandstorm or when she's flying; she also has a pair of light gloves, useful on long flights.
History: Born of a beast person mother and mutant father, Taelia was raised among the tribes of the beast people. Among them she lived as most any normal beast child would; her earliest days consisted of playing with friends and learning the ways of her tribe. She was taught a reverence for nature and an understanding of how to live within it. She was taught how to fight, and would join in the hunting parties.
Her father died when she was young, but this tragic loss of a loved one led to the gaining of new ones. Her mother eventually remarried, this time to another beastman, and they bore a daughter, Falmae.
Taelia loved Falmae greatly. But once again fate would not leave her be in her happiness.
Taelia's father was a legacy of the great war that tore apart the world. He was a mutant built around powerful psionics, and she had inherited his burden of power. At 14 she was sent to the Nous Academy. There, she learned how to control her psionic powers and gained an understanding of the teachings of the "civilized" world; Science and Math, Language and History.
Five years later she finally returned home; finally returned to see the tragedy that awaited her.
Though Taelia had turned her back on her beast blood, Falmae had embraced it. With each passing year she would spend more and more time in her eagle form. Enjoying the wind across her wings; rejoicing in every thousand foot drop to slay prey. Eventually one day, she morphed into her beast self and never turned back. Now that by itself would not be real problem. It is not uncommon among the beast people for a member to be forever locked into their animal form. The tragedy was that she lost not only her human body, but her human mind as well. She was feral; her human mind had become like a book left out to the elements; faded; parts missing. The Eagle ruled.
Upon seeing Falmae and her condition, Taelia, saddened, knew her course. She would watch over her sister, as she had when they were young. They journey across the Wastes, now; surviving off of both society and the land. Taelia hopes that one day she'll find a cure for Falmae, but until that day comes, they'll continue to travel the Endless Sands.
Skills: Her genetics and training with psionincs have made her a powerful empath. She does have some capability with telekinetic abilities, but it's not her strength. Due to her beast people upbringing, she's proficient in the basics of melee combat (A beast child knows how to kill with a knife years before a noble's child knows how to read). When equipped with her energy sword (and for this estimation, not using her psionics) she's better than an average city guard, but would definitely be outclassed by a palace guard.
Her education and present status as a well off merchant have brought her skills in business and an understanding of noble society. She speaks the tongue of the central desert as well as the words of the scholars; she knows enough of the language of the east to do basic business, but little more.
Items: In addition to the aforementioned clothes, she has the following:
A straight, double edged, energy sword.
A small data pad filled with a wide variety of information; she mostly uses it for maps and to keep inventory.
Food/water rations.
Water credits for a variety of cities.
An ever changing variety of light, valuable trade goods.

__________________________________________________

Name: Falmae Muha'demore
Race: Beast People
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Appearance: 3.5m tall, 10m wingspan, weighs 240kg;
A gigantic golden eagle. (lol, what more do you want from me?) She has dark brown feathers, dark eyes and a yellow beak. She has a light harness about her body, but no reins.
History: (See Taelia's history.)
Skills: She has the basic skills one would associate with an eagle the size of a Lon'Din war dog. Falmae can fly vast distances with little effort, can see a rat on the horizon, and could reduce a carriage to blood and splinters in mere moments.
Her sole unexpected aspect is that she has an almost human level of intelligence, though feral in nature; she can understand simple language, and has basic reasoning skills.
Items: She has a light harness about her body. It contains a number of pouches that Taelia uses for storage. It is made of very durable materials, so it doubles as a light armor at times.



* * * * *


Yeah..as you can see I have a tendency to be a bit lengthy with my posts. It works well for one-offs, but it makes back and forth between charaters a little tricky.
*shame* I'm working on it.

Soo, heh, now that you've read all that, I have to confess that I may not use Taelia or Falmae (Part of the reason I included all that is so you can get some idea of the flavor of the Endless Sands. And by 'flavor' I mean the nature of the world, not the writing style; no one expects you to write all long and stupid like I do .). It may depend on whether Indosay decides to join, though, I may just think up a nice segue to put the story tread with Myylie on hold for a touch). BUT, I have another character that I had been working on that I'll probably be bringing out.
SO, I'm definitely joining the campaign and I'll be bringin' 1-to-3 charaters with me!

So, Hello and Hi! Looking forward to playing with you all!


PS:
As for the wild desert beasts, I always assumed they existed in some form (I made a mention of "wild riot-boar" somewhere in one of my posts). To not have something would be...well, I won't say boring, but it does strike me as a wasted opportunity.
But it is a delicate balance, though, isn't it?
To have any amount of wildlife means you have to have an entire desert ecology to maintain it. BUT, if you push that too far, it stops being an apocalyptic wasteland and the RP loses that distinctive edge where just getting through the day is a minor adventure.
It is a tricky balance; though I favor some form of wildlife/monsters to none at all.

[PhoenixFlame]

Welcome, Blacksands. Also perhaps belatedly, to Translucent aswell, and in a fashion, Arcanum too. *rubs her temples idly* I've been talking to some friends of mine over AIM, and I felt the need to bring this up with you all even though I'll regret doing it, since I'm getting the same vibes. I really don't know how your previous forum worked, but if you've taken a cursory look around the RP section, and perhaps joined one of the games for a short while to get a proper feel for the community, you might notice that a lot of the people here aren't new to this sort of thing. In fact, I've known most of the regulars here for several years. While I admit a lot of the things run here may not seem too 'serious'? at times, we're used to writing 'long and stupid' too from time to time.

I know this probably sounds like a rant, but after re-reading some of your signup comments, cringing at how a few are particularly grating (for example the absurdness of the 'making weapons from cows', or 'your characters can be injured') I felt the need to bring it up. I understand sarcasm like this is meant to be in good camraderie with people whom you're storytelling with, yet when attempting to pitch a campaign to a new audience, it's probably best to learn the people before 'settling in.' I for one am simply trying to learn more about your setting, as it interests me after all.

Sorry if I derailed your thread a bit, but I think if you make a few considerations for this, you'll get a lot more interest posts.

Originally Posted by blacksands

PS:
As for the wild desert beasts, I always assumed they existed in some form (I made a mention of "wild riot-boar" somewhere in one of my posts). To not have something would be...well, I won't say boring, but it does strike me as a wasted opportunity.
But it is a delicate balance, though, isn't it?
To have any amount of wildlife means you have to have an entire desert ecology to maintain it. BUT, if you push that too far, it stops being an apocalyptic wasteland and the RP loses that distinctive edge where just getting through the day is a minor adventure.
It is a tricky balance; though I favor some form of wildlife/monsters to none at all.

I'm glad to see someone else favors the rule of cool(TM) when it comes to fantasy settings, but I wouldn't for one be concerned about an apocalptyic wasteland losing it's danger merely because it isn't empty. After all, it's hard to find anything hospitible, regardless of the amount of verdance, in a zero-humidity sea of sand dunes constantly rolling over the endless horizon, obscuring sight for miles, fooling virtually all common means of navigation, with a body completely anathema in function to the parched sea of sand. Constantly the dust leeches your body's fluids, making you too hot to function properly regardless of how much water you possess, not to mention the risk of being flayed alive by the very sands themselves in a sudden storm for which there is absolutely no shelter from.

A few creatures here and there couldn't make it anything but more terrifying, no? Then even travelling by night sounds like madness. Believe me when I say I'm no stranger to these 'You wouldn't last five seconds' enviroments, and in fact like them.

[Arhra]

Originally Posted by blacksands

To have any amount of wildlife means you have to have an entire desert ecology to maintain it. BUT, if you push that too far, it stops being an apocalyptic wasteland and the RP loses that distinctive edge where just getting through the day is a minor adventure.

Yeah, I'd agree you don't want the place teeming with life, but sporadic wildlife can make things a lot more adventuresome.

Worm!

[blacksands]

Thanks for the welcome, Phoenix.

And you make a good point about understanding a forum before solidifying a presence. When I first joined Avariel, I lurked for about a year-and-a-half before making my presence known. Here (while I did peruse some of the RPs a bit to get a small feel for the place) I did sort of jump in feet-first with that first post. Sorry.

Please understand when I said my entry was "long and stupid" I was mearly trying to be self-effacing/humbling. Given that my first entry on the NP forums was a screen spanning entry on my character, I was worried that that was a kind of an arrogant move on my part, so I was trying to blunt that with a little self-bashing.
Heh, I remember on the old site doing the same thing (apologizing for my long entries) and getting the same response (that long or short doesn't matter; a good post is a good post regardless of size).

Also, a quick tangent I'd like to go on. The majority of the roleplayers at the old site (like the majority of the roleplayers here) were rather skilled at what they did (something I found out the hard way after the site died and I hunted around attempting to locate another RP forum to match what I was used to on the old one). Additionally, though I'm probably confusing my history here a bit, I think Avariel was a small spinoff of the Nuklear Power forums (I know they at least shared several members).
So, all-in-all, I suspect there are likely quite a bit of shaired values and mores between the two groups.


Anyway, on to the Sands.
Endless Sands has some really cool things going for it, but two things in particular really stand out to me:
1. Setting
A classic post-apocalyptic world where people have jury-rigged and scavenged together a life, but set apx a 1000 years in the future. So, people aren't scrounging together pieces of pipe and gas motors, but are instead scavenging the remnants of god-like empires. This all leads to some very cool and unique cities, people, monsters, and quests.

2. Narrative
It's built using a freeform chapter structure. This means that at the end of one chapter the next could start in the same city with the same characters; start in a nearby city with a mix of new and old characters; or it could start on the other side of the globe with a whole new cast doing a wholly different sort of quest. It's very freeform, allowing players to easily kill-off a main, put their character on hold for a chapter and try out someone new, or cultivate and carry one character through many chapters. It's a system that encourages cool story.

And, finally both of these things combine to make something else: a world that's very easy to add onto. The shifting sands are always turning up new technologies and mysteries; new cities are waiting to be created; factions can be invented; and all existing things are waiting to be fleshed out with new details. The world grows with the players and according to their desires.
Just run it by the GM. So long as it's both plausible and cool, new content usually gets added.
Look! Just in this conversation we've already added wild animals to the Sands!
Customizability is a cool thing.


As an aside, I understand the desire/need to get some more details about what little things are already established in the universe. I'll try and add a bunch of stuff later...when I"m not so sleepy.




Oh, quick tangent response. Arhra, that screen-cap, might that be Borderlands? Am I guessing right?

[Arhra]

Hmmm, I haven't properly said hello either... I've gotten too crotchety in my old age.

Welcome Blacksands, and Translucent too.

Anyway, basically it's just there was a few statements earlier in this thread that set off a few warning signals for us ancient and wary denizens of the RP section. Some replies seemed a little condescending, like that "I can't see someone wanting to kill off their milk giving cow just so they can make a maul or weapon out of it's horns or jaw." line.

It's nice to see the RP will be fairly open with regards to player based setting expansion. And its always nice to have some more fresh blood around here.

Oh, I have to admit I was pleased to see I was correct in my speculation that people were really just attaching mythical names to things. 'Atlantis' did make me do a spit-take.

Oh, quick tangent response. Arhra, that screen-cap, might that be Borderlands? Am I guessing right?

Its from one of the live action versions of Dune. Oh those crazy, mile long Great Makers. The Spice is life!

Hmm, have a rough idea of what sort of character I'd like to do, but am still trying to get specifics sorted... Ah well, should have something by the end of the week.

[PhoenixFlame]

Understood, and again, I didn't want to come down on you or anything for anything specific, just getting those vibes out on the table so they can be delt with in advance.

Your setting blurb however, is precisely why I thought it was cool. If you've ever played 'Exalted', particularly as a sorceror-savant... Well, let's just say that scrounging together technology of god-like empires is great fun.

In other news: Since I decided to abandon my last concept, Arhra and I have been working on creating a team (duo, anyway.) of scavengers whom roam around the wastes looking for such lost technology, which was my second pick for general character design anyway, and fits your setting. What sort of limits on chargen technology do you want to see? I figure we'd need a rover-esque all-terrain vehicle (possibly a combat/reconiassiance model) for a support vehicle/transport in addition to a few generic tools and weapons. What's your take on owning vehicles?