The Zodiac Guilds Open World RPG

[Absyinthe_Artica]

I have work in a few minutes. I'll be stewing over all over your ideas for when I get home later tonight. I'll respond to them than! ^.^

 

[chaosheart13]

Along with the wand idea, maybe the Chinese zodiac guilds could be the only ones with familiars? Though Idk how that would work for the dragon guild, hmm...

 

[Ramboing]

Another question, would one zodiac "family" be larger/more powerful than the other?

 

[pinkpanda8357]

Is there a place to make characters for this rp or is that still a work in progress? The idea is really interesting and I would love to join! I also didn't know Norse zodiac signs existed *o*

 

[Absyinthe_Artica]

@Scath ; Maybe not families but Covens instead? So...the General Zodiac Coven would be comprised of Western Mythology Races. the Chinese Zodiac Coven would be comprised of Asian Mythology Races. Finally, the Celtic Zodiac Coven would be comprised of Celtic Mythology Races. ^.^
@chaosheart13 ; Firstly, it would be okay if they were regular wands and such. We could do that then. I am saying this mainly because Zodiac Artifacts no matter what Zodiac can be any object. As long as it has a piece of that Zodiac Deity's Soul within it.Hmm, I am not so sure about the Chinese one.Because EVERY guild as Companions they can purchase/summon that include animals. ^.^. As well, it doesn't matter what guild you are to claim a Zodiac Artifact. Just know that you may be outcasted from your guild if your character does this. Another thing that I mentioned in my notes for Aries,was the fact that regular objects cannot rival the power of Zodiac Artifacts. This means if you want to become a Dieuld you have to find all pieces of the Zodiac Artifact and then put it together to challenge them for their throne!
@Ramboing ; Thanks for the question. What do you mean by families? Like the Coven aspect with the 3 categories? Or the guilds?

 

[Absyinthe_Artica]

@pinkpanda8357 Sorry I hit submit before I was finished addressing you. This is a total WIP and Plotting Thread. So any and all ideas are encouraged and possibly going to be in the final OOC when it is finished. Thanks for your interest, any more questions?

 

[Ramboing]

@Scath ; Maybe not families but Covens instead? So...the General Zodiac Coven would be comprised of Western Mythology Races. the Chinese Zodiac Coven would be comprised of Asian Mythology Races. Finally, the Celtic Zodiac Coven would be comprised of Celtic Mythology Races. ^.^
@chaosheart13 ; Firstly, it would be okay if they were regular wands and such. We could do that then. I am saying this mainly because Zodiac Artifacts no matter what Zodiac can be any object. As long as it has a piece of that Zodiac Deity's Soul within it.Hmm, I am not so sure about the Chinese one.Because EVERY guild as Companions they can purchase/summon that include animals. ^.^. As well, it doesn't matter what guild you are to claim a Zodiac Artifact. Just know that you may be outcasted from your guild if your character does this. Another thing that I mentioned in my notes for Aries,was the fact that regular objects cannot rival the power of Zodiac Artifacts. This means if you want to become a Dieuld you have to find all pieces of the Zodiac Artifact and then put it together to challenge them for their throne!
@Ramboing ; Thanks for the question. What do you mean by families? Like the Coven aspect with the 3 categories? Or the guilds?

Sorry I meant the guilds themselves. Are there significant size differences between the three?

 

[Scath]

@WhisperingWillows - I suppose it would depend on how many races you want available to choose from...If we say that any race from any of the three Western, Chinese, and Celtic mythologies is open to play, you could wind up with a huge variety. Or you could limit the number of races to play...Like one race each for the three, which would give you three races to choose from, or you could do two to three races for each one (Western, Chinese, Celtic.) I would be willing to do the research into the races and provide a list if you want?

@Ramboing - If you're wanting to know the number of guilds in each Coven/family, then the Celtic has one guild more than both the Western and Chinese, since those have twelve guilds each. I would think that the size of each guild -regardless of coven/family- would vary depending on how many people joined the roleplay plus the population of the world/city/land the guilds are in.

We could say that each guild has a rough estimate of perhaps 100 people...with a total of 37 guilds, that would result in around 370 people that are in guilds.....That number can vary though depending on entrance exams/tests and what the individual guilds look for in a guildmate.

Did that help any? (Probably not given how my logic and thinking tends to be...twisted)

 

[Isomia.n]

Hello, I'd love to join this RP whenever it gets up in the future. Out of all the Zodiac renditions I've seen on Iwaku this has to be the most creative and interesting.

@SaidtheSky You have time for another RP?

 

[SaidtheSky]

Hello, I'd love to join this RP whenever it gets up in the future :) Out of all the Zodiac renditions I've seen on Iwaku this has to be the most creative and interesting.

@SaidtheSky You have sometime for another RP?

Yea :D Thanks for the invite I usually don't have the time to scour the interest check -_- Anyways this I've read through all the ideas and I'm loving the concept. Will hopefully be able to jump in when the thread is open :)

 

[Darru]

I don't know, maybe is just my opinion, but you dear people, are fired up :)
My opinion, my honest opinion, you think way to much, relax.
Still, with races, I have one question, why we can't keep a humanoid form ? And why can't we make our own races ? I mean, getting the inspiration from myths, legends and the culture of the respective zodiacs and so, we can make a whole new image of the zodiacs.
Guys, honestly, you are a bunch of creative minds.

Still, one more question: is there some sort of affinity between zodiacs?
Example: In western zodiac: the aquarius -> in the chinese zodiac: is the pig -> in the celtic zodiac: rowan - The thinker
I mean, they share almost the same dates, periods. So can't they share some connections of some sort ? Like siblings ?

 

[Absyinthe_Artica]

Before I go any further, I appreciate all your suggestions. Thanks for contributing you guys and I am working hard to put out more lore information on each guild. ^.^

@Scath I won't limit my player's creative freedom too much. The basic guideline for races is if you want that character to align with one of the three covens: General, Chinese, Zodiac than their species/race will have to have influences from their respective mythology. I appreciate your wanting to research, you can for your own character concepts. But I want to keep the species more open for creative freedom. ^.^

@Ramboing The size difference really depends on the characters that sign up. If one guild/coven is favored over another I will fill the others with NPCS galore to rival the player characters so it is even. I don't like giving numbers Scath. The total number of guild members depends on the characters who sign up so it isn't really determined until then.

Also, I am not sure on my thoughts on guild exams? I'd prefer if they were called Entry Missions, please ^.^ These Entry Missions will vary depending on the goal of the guild. For example, Aries' goal is to Adventure the always expanding world of Zverokruh that was blessed upon them by the Zodiac Deity of Aries. So the Entry Mission would be to explore or adventure to a specific place to prove your worthy of the goal of that guild. Other guilds especially the Celtic guilds are more nature and element orientated. Their Entry Missions would be something like collecting a rare species of plant, or creating it, etc.

@Isomia.n THANK YOU! I appreciate your interest and your successful tagging!~ I am tickled to hear you say that mine is the most creative, thanks again. IF you have any questions, let me know!

@SaidtheSky Thanks for your interest, I appreciate you coming here! If you have any questions let me know. I am updating this thread periodically with information regarding the guilds that is more information heavy then I want the OOC to have. ^.^ So check back every now and again. :D

@Darru Hey, good to see you back here again! Well, like I mentioned above, depending on what coven you want your character to be aligned with is what guidelines you have to follow for their race/species. I say guidelines very loosely. As long as I get the feeling that your character is more influenced by one coven or the other we're good. Now affinity between covens is a wonderful idea..however it is a little harder to fit chinese in with dates because they go by years. However I like the idea and think that the signs who are affiliated with each other share a 1) telepathic Communication 2)Similar Zodiac Powers 3)A Collection of Zodiac Artifacts that symbolizes all three.

Now what do you think of their links? The only problem is there is 13 in the Celtic Zodiac, but I think we could double up on the Gemini Link since it represents twins. When I say links I mean the format of the example you provided.

Such fun!

 

[Darru]

Thank you very much for your replay.
For the moment the affiliation is only a vague thought, I don't have something for sure. But, the idea of the links is ok with me. Their affiliation I saw it like a simple siblings coonnection, a very strong bond between them. But the idea that they can share something, anything is so much fun for me.

 

[Absyinthe_Artica]

You're very welcome, I am glad it is fun for you! That makes me so happy to hear.
So the first link I have come up with is:
Aries-Rat-Willow
Hmm, how about these "links" are formally called "Coven Triads" The three Zodiac signs that make up a triad are all interconnected. This means that guild members of Aries, Rat, or Willow all share a connection with one another that can be developed with training. As well, each guild member of this first triad are also blessed with three different Zodiac Powers relating to the triad, in this case it would be: Head of Ram, Size of Rat, and Perception of Willows. Finally there would be three different zodiac artifacts that each represent this Coven Triad(leaving some surprise). When the items have been put back together and joined they will create a world event of some sort as well as the ultimate zodiac artifact. Who knows what power this could possess? Could it awaken the resting Zodiac Deities? Perhaps. ^.^

Alright more brain storming guys! A few questions for you players:

Would you want a point system that is Coven/guild wide labeled "Zodiac Orbs" in which having a certain amount at the end of a time period gains you something? If so, what something would you like in particular??

Should there be official names for each Coven Triad or should we just label them 1,2, 3 etc?

As well, should there be more connection between these Coven Triads? Would you want more rewards for creating the completed triad zodiac artifact?


Alright let that stew... :D

 

[Kestrel]

It's a bit difficult for me to get a good grip on what the RP will be like. Futuristic is a pretty broad descriptor. Ranging from, I don't know, Star Wars to Star Trek. I understand the world is lead by a large amount of different factions whose goals may or may not align, but do not answer to an overarching power as a lord would to a king. These guilds are lead by people with superpowers and said superpowers are gained by contributing and remaining loyal to a faction. But how does the world look like and how's daily life for your average Joe or Jane? What tech level are we on? To what degree are the artefacts and their magic interwoven into common society? What are the actual goals of each guild? What are existing conflicts within the world? etc.

I'm also a bit in the dark about the freedom players have with choosing factions. With such a wide array of options, it's easy to have the majority of, if not all, the characters in different factions. Is there some kind of plot point thought out to pull and keep them together? Or should I interpret open world more as everyone goes their own way regardless of whether that comes with interaction between players or not?

Futuristic setting with guilds, superpowers and ties to astrology and mythology sounds really cool and I might be interested, but it's actual setting and premise feel a bit vague to me. Could you clarify what the RP is going to be like a bit more?

 

[Absyinthe_Artica]

I am excited to see your face here Kestrel, it's a pleasure to possibly have your interest and I'll do my best to answer all of your questions with as much detail as possible. If you want to know more afterwards, or have any suggestions, let me know!

When considering the world of Zverokruh and it's features, the first thing I'd like you to know is that it always expands. The Zodiac Deity of Aries blessed the world so that there were always new places to explore no matter where you go. New locations will constantly be introduced throughout the roleplay. Secondly, the Zodiac Covens are split into three rings across the always expanding planet. I started to draw a mock up of what the over world map looks like here to give you an idea:

Each ring is divided into sections for each Zodiac Sign of that Coven. So there will be 12 Guild Territories in the Common Zodiac Coven ring, 12 Guild Territories in the Chinese Zodiac Coven ring, and 13 Guild Territories for the Celtic Zodiac Coven ring. However if this doesn't come across well, I may change it up. But for now I believe each section will be dedicated to the sign their guild represents in many ways. (Architecture, Geography, Biology, etc). Even though the picture may make the sections look small for some guilds, with the blessing of Zodiac Aries, Each Sections expands outward harmoniously each star generation. A star generation is the amount of time that passes before the next expansion upon the world. One star generation is equal to four earth years.

That's a good question; I am assuming you mean for those who haven't aligned with a guild yet right? Even so, those who are average still are a member of the Zverokruh population and are treated as citizens. There are several occupations average citizens can apply for to help out around their guild communities. The ones who have not aligned yet are treated highly and guild members should be proving their Guild's worth every chance they get around those citizens. Usually those who have not aligned with a guild can rent spaces to live but not own them outright. They all are respected and in the communities there is a heavy pressure to join a guild by the time your character has experienced 5 star generations.

The Tech level is definitely advanced. However, the influence of the Zodiac signs does give it more of a magical twist than anything and the landscapes show that. Technology is to the point of implanted augmented reality. Which means that there are devices that your character can purchase to influence their body. Cellphone implants in the ear, camera implant in the eye, and an implant to absorb Zodiac Magic are some of the things that this society is capable of. The Zodiac Magic is able for anyone to tap into with the right knowledge. Zodiac Artifacts are precious to the guilds and most common society doesn't care about them, they just go about their lives as usual. This is because if they were to start inquiring too much into them without joining a guild, there could be consequences. Now I don't have much on their goals but here is my ideas for each, if you guys have suggestions I'd love to hear them too:

COMMON:
Aries - Adventuring with Confidence
Taurus - Farming with Patience
Gemini - Fighting with Versatility
Cancer - Nurturing the Tamed
Leo - Leading the Weak
Virgo - Analyzing all Knowledge
Libra - Balancing Zodiac Magic
Scorpio - Controlling Trade & Business
Sagittarius - Humoring the Masses
Capricorn - Disciplining the Wrong
Aquarius - Creating New Ideas
Pisces - Perceiving Zodiac Secrets

CHINESE:
Rat - Take all Opportunities (Thieves Guild anyone)
Ox - Diligence in Work
Tiger - Brave the Worst
Rabbit - Elegance with Skill
Dragon - Leading with Power
Snake - Be Thoughtful in Judgments
Horse - Always have Optimistic Energy
Goat - To Defend the Honest
Monkey - To Cause Mischief with Jokes
Rooster - Listen to all Voices
Dog - Caution with Loyalty
Pig - Be Generous to Needs

CELTIC:
Birch - To Achieve a Diverse World
Rowan - Having Original Thoughts
Ash - To Enchant the Senses
Alder - Create New Paths for Others
Willow - To Observe the Actions of Others
Hawthorn - Giving Illusions to Nature
Oak - To Stabilize Tense Situations
Holly - To Rule with Flora
Hazel - To Learn all Knowledge
Vine - To Create Equality for all
Ivy - To accept all Superior Challenges
Reed - Being Inquisitive about Meanings
Elder - To Seek out New Horizons

Some conflicts I can think of right off the bat:
Guild Missions - Many missions require your guild invading others sacred places and such.
Power Struggles with Guilds - Some guilds don't all want to work together, there are many that wish to take over other guilds for their own.
The Creatures that live within Zverokruh. - There are a variety of Zodiac Beasts that roam the vast biomes of Zverokruh. They are a constant threat because most of them are carnivorous.

I haven't though too much about a plot point to tie all the guilds together besides my question about "Zodiac Orb" points and how they can be a world wide challenge that all guilds compete in. I'd love to hear suggestions because when I say "Open World" I mean "Always Open for Characters" and "A Free world to Openly Explore". I really want a lot of player interaction so any ideas on that front would be helpful.

If I haven't clarified enough, ask me all the questions you want. I'd love to keep your interest, Kestrel.

 

[chaosheart13]

Personally, I don't mind a point system and I would prefer if the Zodiac Coven Triads are named, gives it more flavor. Not sure what to say about the other questions though.

 

[Kestrel]

I have a few more questions, but my phone isn't great for it. I 'll probably post them nearing the weekend. Thanks for the answers so far.

 

[Scath]

*shuffles nervously* I didn't mean to be pushy...I'm sorry.

@WhisperingWillows I like your ideas, an ever expanding world sounds very intriguing! Is there a sort of neutral ground where all the guilds could gather and those non-affiliated could live? I mean, each guild specializes in something but only by working together (in kind of checks and balances system) could a civilization work well...I don't know if that's something you all want to consider or not?

 

[Absyinthe_Artica]

Don't be sorry, it's okay to have suggestions. I didn't feel like you were being pushy at all. ^.^
Thank you, and yes that is what keeps things new and exciting! Hmm, a neutral ground? That sounds like it could be effective. Perhaps...it could be an entirely underground city? A place where it doesn't matter what guild or affiliation you are from you may gather and rent your houses without worry from overworld guild pressure! Maybe a black market could come up to? Hmm. so many ideas.
Well they work together to some extent enough to sustain a large community; but there are actually different guilds who are adversaries and will not work together no matter what the reason too. Unless you meant something else?