First I want to thank everyone that has shown interest and given advice. It's great to see so man of you already throwing your hats into this idea with so little information out there. This sort of thing isn't for everyone, I know that, and more often than not you cannot accommodate everyone. That being said, I am more than willing to work with people to try to make things more acceptable to a broader audience. As for the 'One Post Per Day' rule; that is something I cannot really budge on but in truth it's more of a guideline than a rule. If you read closely each person is given a week between posts before their character is moved onward by a GM, and another week before they are killed off. Does this mean everyone is going to post just once a week? No, it does not. Most of us will be positing once a day to keep the story moving forward and away from stagnation. The allotted week is just a safety net for those whom get busy and can't log on for a day pr so. I do, however; appreciate knowing beforehand if someone is not going to be on so myself and my fellow writer's aren't left in the lurch.
Setting:
Our story will take place in the land of Argoria, a fantasy interpretation of Medieval Europe. Being one of the largest continents of the world it supports much diversity in both people, culture, and beliefs, however in the last century or so the land has become dominated by worship of the 'Father'. There are many nations located within Argoria, some we will visit others we may never see, and most of which seemed to be locked within a perpetual power struggle over ancient claims of heredity. The only place seemingly untouched by the petty wars waging across the land is Renaris, the Holy City, and seat of worship of the 'Father'. There the High King preaches peace and promises love from the Father should other nations lay down there arms and join Renaris in it's bliss.
That's just a basic overview of Argoria at a glance. Like with many Role-Plays that allow character freedom it's hard to actually map out a set path, or set of locations, until the Role-Play starts rolling onward. Of course I have a little more than this jotted down in notes but if you've seen one Medieval Fantasy setting I think you should be able to grasp the general idea of what to expect. If you would like to know more or have any questions just ask. Better to ask and know right off the bat than go on hoping you aren't wrong.
Character Creation:
I like to leave character's mainly up to their writers. You force too many stipulations on someone and they end up with a character they hate and probably will not stick around for. That being said; I'm a literate writer and like to see well developed characters. You'll never see me playing the typical heroic knight or the misunderstood protagonist, I like deep characters that are Human. They should have flaws, fears, hopes, habits, hates, love, and everything else I could list here. Sometimes you make a character that fits into a generic role without realizing, but most of the time a person knows full well if their character is leaning towards that category before they even begin typing. If you can help it try to be original at all times. A few other things to note:
1. Characters should have a history. (Some GM's won't require this of their writers, I do. Your characters didn't appear from nothingness, they should have a history. Now, this doesn't have to be a long biography or anything of that sort. One to three paragraphs is fine, just be sure to include how you were marked somewhere within.)
2. Stay true to your alignment. (When I draw up the character sheet template you can bet I'll put an alignment section on it. Stay true to what you put down. If you are Lawful Good, then don't be a murderous jack-wagon. If you are Chaotic Evil, don't go out of your way to save the beautiful Elf woman. Alignments can change, that happens with character development, but it doesn't happen all at once and unexpectedly.)
3. We are mortal. (The essence of this story will be ordinary people from different walks of life rising to meet an insurmountable challenge. They can be knights, mages, mercenaries, or peasants and farmers. No matter what your character's background remember that he/she is mortal. The mark and it's abilities may have made you better than the average man, but none of us are superhuman.)
4. Mark abilities start weak and grow over time. (When you make your character's and you are thinking about what ability to choose for him/her, remember that it should start out pretty meager. If you want a character that can summon meteors of fire to wipe out entire cities, then perhaps he should start out only able to create small burst of fire.)
5. Mark abilities come at a price. (The stronger the degree in which you use an ability, and the length in which it remains active, determine the physical toll it takes on your body. If you have an ability that make you super fast, then the longer you use it the longer it takes your legs to recover. Use it too long and you may lose a leg. Something along those lines.)
6. NO CHILDREN!!! (Do not make a character under the age of twenty. This is a Role-Play of a highly serious nature and I do not wish to see all but two of the character's RPing as hormonal teenagers. I would prefer people making characters on into their thirties and forties, but absolutely no one under twenty.)
7. Appear you age. (If you are one of those people that create characters and in the appearance section put something like "Despite his/her age he/she appears to be very young." you better have a reason in your history why you are fifty and look to be twenty.)
8. Magic is rare and limited. (Magic is something rarely if ever seen by normal people. Spells would appear to most as miracles or curses. That of course does not mean there cannot be a wizard character. Just know that magic takes a toll it's user as well, not to the extent of the Marks of course, and is limited to small things. I.E.- There will be no Mages that reverse time or vaporize enemies.)
9. Classical fantasy races do exist, but are not available to be PC's. (I thought about it for a long time and for the story I've outlined it makes no sense to have a random elf or dwarf in our party. Non-Human races will have a big part in the later story but I cannot justify allowing them as PC's. Not yet anyway.)
10. Leave room for development. (When making your character try and look forward to how you wish him/her to develop. No character should be the same at both beginning and end of a story, change is bound to happen, so when making your character take that to heart. I know it is hard to see exactly how a character will change until the story unfolds, but just have a general idea of what will make your character shift his ideals.)
Mark of Perdition:
The Mark of Perdition is the singular guiding facet in the story. Because of it our characters will have all suffered great loss, because of it our characters will come together in Renaris, and because of it the damned ones will continually seek out our immortal souls. However; what exactly is the Mark of Perdition? What is it's purpose? Why were our characters marked? Well, let me tell you.
1. The Mark of Perdition is actually a demonic brand. Lesser hell-spawn that bleed through the cracks between worlds place them on people whom have suffered true loss. (The stated loss is normally cause by the Demons themselves so that they may place marks on those with weakened hearts.)
2. Only those whom have lost people close to them, people they loved beyond measure, are ever marked. (This could be family, a love, a wife, children, friends, anyone that your character would deeply mourn if taken.)
3. To be marked is to be damned. (Once marked, regardless of your beliefs or good deeds you have done, your soul damned to Perdition. It is not known if there is a way to save one's soul, but many that have survived begin marked have died trying to find out.)
4. Those marked live between worlds. (Once marked the pull Perdition has upon you never leaves. Because of this those marked begin to see the unseen. The creatures that exist upon the world in a different spectrum of reality become as clear to the marked as another man.)
5. The marked are forever hunted. (Once marked the creatures of Perdition will forever hunt you. They are drawn to the curse of the mark, hoping to drag the marked down into the deepest pits of the void.)
6. The marked can sense the damned. (Just as the damned ones are drawn to the mark, the mark is drawn to them. Those bearing the mark will feel it's pull when creatures of Perdition draw near.)
7. The mark strengthens it's bearer. (The pull towards Perdition the mark has on it's bearer unintentionally strengthens them. Living between reality and the spectral world for so a long period of time enhances the bodies of the marked, and awakens innate abilities lying dormant within them.)
8. The Mark is a creation of evil. (Over use of the Mark and it's abilities cause one to slowly lose grip on their sanity. Being a creation of evil, the more it is used the stronger it becomes until the marked loses control and eventually blacks out. It is said that if used too much, the marked will even become one of the damned.)
So this is what I've got for now. Still working things out but you guys know I'm open for suggestions. Just let me know what you think and I can continue working this out. Once I get confirmation that at least five people want to join this Role-Play I'll go ahead and start typing it up!
