The kingdom of Crimea has enjoyed a long existence. It has managed to either conquer or ally with all challengers to its fair and just rule. The kingdom is not perfect and has seen its share of corrupt dictators and governmental officials. Thankfully many heroes have risen to dispose of them and institute new orders. But unfortunately order is not to last in this peaceful kingdom.
Legends tell of a hero who will arrive in a time of great strife the likes of which Crimea has never seen nor ever will see. The legend is extremely vague but it does speak of a way to recognize the hero when he/she arises. This way is by the Mark of Crimea. The Mark of Crimea is a special birthmark that appears to be drawn with black ink on the right shoulder of the hero. The mark of Crimea is simple. It is 2 arrows crisscrossing each other with a star where the arrows meet. Unfortunately it has been countless centuries since the legend was first told and it has fallen out of public knowledge as no one believes that anyone or anything could threaten the kingdom. But they are wrong; dead wrong.
In fact the kingdom is at a turning point in its existence, for the king’s top magician, Hessin, plans to overthrow the king. But he has far worse plans for the kingdom then a simple coup d’état. He plans to transform Crimea and the rest of the continent into a dictatorship where he knows and controls everything within its walls. Whether his plans succeed or not is left to the hands of fate as well as a few choice citizens of Crimea.
Races
Humans: Humans are the major race within Crimea. Their ability to reproduce quickly and efficiently has allowed them to take up that role. They came to Crimea by boat many eons ago and so are the newest race upon these lands. Currently it is a human king who rules over all of Crimea. Humans are far from the most magically inclined in Crimea and aren’t proficient with any specific types of magic. What they lack in magical ability, they more then make up for with their ingenuity and their gifts with technology. They have found ways to use spells that no other species, not even the nymphs, have ever thought of. They come in all shapes and sizes, although they are too tall to be mistaken for dwarfs and too stocky to be mistaken for Elves.
Elves: Elves are slender built creatures with pointy ears and usually long hair although some radical elves have taken to shortening their hair down to human size. Then it can be hard to tell the difference. Elves are normally a peace-loving nation but when they get attacked they fight back with all the force in their lands. Elves are found throughout all of Crimea but the highest concentration of them is in the Granen forest located to the Northwest of Crimea. The forest is surrounded by large mountains and the path that leads to the Elves’ capital is known only by the messengers and diplomats the queen sends to the king of Crimea. Elves are particularly adept with holy magic as well as magic that affect the animals and plants around them. Elves are the longest living races on all of Crimea and can live up to 330 years long.
Dwarves: The Dwarves are a curious race. They worship an entirely different god called Hrothgare, of which the nearby mountains derive their name. The dwarfs are the main merchants in Crimea, selling all kinds of trinkets wherever they go. Some of it is extremely precious rock, while other pieces are merely trash they’ve found on their travels. There are some dwarfs who are not merchants and those have taken up jobs as blacksmiths or other metal working jobs. The dwarfs are proficient with equipment enhancement as well as fire and earth magic. The center of the dwarf kingdom lies deep within the Hrothgare Mountains and is known to all. However, the route is incredibly well guarded, with dwarf archers ready to shoot down any who come into their territory uninvited.
Nymphs: Nymphs live throughout Crimea. There are five types of nymphs and each are usually located near strong concentrations of their particular elements. Water nymphs live close to rivers as well as the ocean and can also appear during intense storms. Earth nymphs are located near the Hrothgare mountain range along with any other mountains and can also be seen during earthquakes or landslides. Fire nymphs are located near volcanoes and also show up during intense firestorms. Tree nymphs dwell in forests, surrounded by plant life. Wind nymphs are the hardest nymphs to find as they live high in the clouds and only come down to Crimea during tornadoes or intense windstorms. Each nymph can only use spells that are in their element but they are intensely specialized in those spells. As well, each nymph can alter their appearance to match that of a human which allows them to blend in with the general population of Crimea.
Dragons (Unplayable): Dragons are located in the southern part of Crimea and rarely venture outside their territory. They are a curious race. In some ways they act like beasts but in many ways they also act like the other races. They can use magic and are quite powerful using it but they seem to only be able to use it under situations of intense emotion. As well, unlike the other races, they don’t need to speak the name of their spell when they use magic. They cannot speak outside of bestial sounds so they communicate with the other races telepathically. Dragons do not ever stop growing but the largest one ever recorded was 300 feet long.
Factions
Cloaks of Darkness: These are the resident assassins of Crimea. They are known for being extremely selective in whom they let into their guild and it is said that every person who joins is broken after they join the guild to make them a harder assassin. This guild would be your ordinary group of assassins if it wasn’t for the way they enhance their bodies. The top members of the guild are experts in surgery and know how to enhance the skeletal structure of their fellow members using small machines or various pieces of metal. The most common enhancement is known as the Finger Blades, which are small blades in the 5 fingers of one hand that can come out and retract at will. The higher up in the hierarchy of the Cloaks of Darkness you are, the more extreme or the more numerous your enhancements are.
The Clerics of Ilicid: These are the clerics who worship the goddess of Crimea, known as Illicid. She is said to be the embodiment of all that is good and holy within Crimea. She protects Crimea from the embodiment of evil known as Azrican. Azrican is a demon lord and is the embodiment of all that is evil and unjust. He directly opposes Illicid. Whether Ilicid or Azrican exist is anyone’s guess but the followers of the religion are very fervent and will not hesitate to punish nonbelievers who they think commit heresies. The leader of the clerics is said to be the most powerful practitioner of holy magic there is though there are rumors that the elves have an even more powerful user of holy magic. Whether this is true or not remains to be seen.
Hunting Arrows: This guild is focused on hunting for sport the various creatures and beasts roaming the borders of the continent. They are most well known for their ability to channel their spells into their weapons, increasing their attributes and sometimes giving them elemental properties. The head of the guild is said to be able to hit 5 rabbits in a row from 50 feet away. The Hunting Blades also act as freelance mercenaries to anyone who asks. However they will never take any assignments that involve assassination for they think that they like to keep their morals.
The Crimean Army: The Crimean army is split in half between sorcerers who have been extensively trained under the elves in the use of magic to regular soldiers who have been trained since they signed up in the use of their weapon. Instead of being assigned their weapon, each and every soldier chooses their weapon when they sign up and then they are taught in the use of that weapon whether it be crossbow, broad sword or dagger. The army is led by Hessin, who has proven his worth through his magical strength and his willingness to do absolutely anything that must be done to complete any goal he is given.
Notable Locations
Frestill
The capital city of Crimea, this city has everything almost anyone in the kingdom would want. It is the centre for entertainment, with traveling bards and minstrels going through the town square daily. The town is built like a fortress in case of enemy attack, with guard posts throughout the city and the most secure building built in the centre of it. The town is built around a town square, which lies right in front of the castle. The castle towers about the city, its ramparts providing a clear view almost to the wall surrounding the city
Edeena:
The capital of the elves lies deep within the Pontia forest which is completely surrounded on all sides by mountains The only way the forest has gotten any water is through the elves’ and the nymphs’ use of magic. Because of this the forest the route to the elf city is almost unknown to everyone but the elves themselves. The city is a lot like Crimea but the city is integrated with nature. You’ll find vines growing over the houses, flowers with their roots into the city’s water supply. In short the elf city is in complete harmony with the forest.
Gromgar:[/b
The capital of the Dwarves lies inside a mountain range, the route carefully guarded. In fact the city is located inside of a humongous extinct volcanoes’ caldera. The caldera stretches on for miles enabling the city to grow exponentially. In the middle of the city is a enormous gem as big as a dragon’s head that has been meticulously carved into the shape of a rose flower. The city itself is a testament to the amount of gems buried deep within the mountains, with almost every building having at least one gem built into it no matter how small the gem. In fact there are so many gems in the Hrothgare mountain range that they have become worthless to the dwarves and so they are almost given away to the other kingdoms.
[b]Notable NPCs
King Chadossa Frestill of Crimea
Chadossa was raised from birth to take up the mantle of king when his father would eventually die. He was groomed in the ways of diplomacy, manners and ever combat so that if someone attempted to assassinate him, he could defend himself. He was an only child and since he was constantly confined to the palace he knew no friends his own age that he could play with. Instead he took to befriending the various servants around the castle. His best friend was the castle cook who taught the young prince everything the cook knew about which plants were tasty and which could send a man to his grave.
Eventually Chadossa grew tired of being the prince. He had grander aspirations for himself and Crimea. So he snuck out of the castle to live in the village, using a disguise to keep himself from being noticed. He then spent weeks searching for the Cloaks of Darkness’ headquarters until he finally came across it. Naturally they were a bit skeptical at first but after the prince promised them they could have 5 treasures from the royal treasure vault, they threw caution to the wind and accepted his proposal to assassinate the king using a special medicinal herb that in large quantities could kill. The prince returned to oversee the process. The assassin snuck some of the poison into the king’s food at breakfast and then quietly snuck out. Chadossa then watched the old man collapse right in front of him. Since that incident he has ruled over all of Crimea.
King Bromar Andelgrad of Mithrim the dwarf kingdom
Bromar, unlike Chadossa who got his way to the top through treachery or Estil who rose to her position based on chance, battled his way to the top. In Dwarf society the strongest prevail and Bromar certainly proved his strength. Every time a dwarf king dies the dwarfs hold a tournament known as the Gauntlet of Strength to determine the next king. Whoever wins the tournament is the king until their death. Bromar won the last tournament and has ruled Mithrim with strength and oddly, diplomacy which some dwarfs have not gotten used too.
Isidar Fren, brother to Elythia and leader of the Cloaks of Darkness
Isidar grew up with his sister, Elythia, in the slums of Frestill, scrounging for whatever food they could find until they learned of both the Hunting Arrows and the Cloaks of Darkness from an odd street merchant that claimed he was kicked out of both. Isidar joined the Cloaks as he believed that they would only get high in life through taking risks and gambles. So he took the gamble of joining the Cloaks and getting his mechanical implant, the finger blades. As he completed more dangerous and skill-testing assassinations he rose through the ranks until he was the second in command. He was the assassin that slipped poison into the king’s food. After he went back to the hideout he accused the leader of being weak, since he did not accept the proposition. He then stabbed the leader through the head and took his spot. He has been the leader since then, taking on assignments too dangerous for anyone else in his clan.
His holiness Sir Francis Grenet, leader of the Clerics of Ilicid
Francis was raised in an extremely religious family, where every sin made was welcomed with a lashing. This groomed Francis into an extremely disciplined person who obeyed every single rule no matter ho slight. He soon took up the Clerics of Ilicid's teachings by going to a private religious academy. There he learned the way of Illicid and to prove that he was the most devoted follower there was he set out on a pilgrimage to the holy city of Daraman, where it is said Illicid was born as a normal villager to teach herself humility. Once he got to Daraman he located a priceless relic that some shopkeeper was using as a paperweight. He bought the relic and brought it back to Frestill. When he got back and showed the relic to the leader of the Clerics, he was immediately promoted to the Council of Ilicid for his devotedness. Over the years he showed such devotion to the religion that when the old leader died, he was immediately promoted to the leader position. He has continued to show utmost devotion to his religion.
Elythia Fren, sister to Isidar and leader of the Hunting Arrows
Elythia, unlike Isidar, had a conscience and so she chose to join the Hunting Arrows instead of the Cloaks of Darkness. Like everyone in the guild she was shuttled through every single training exercise the guild had. She had such a natural apathy for it she even did better then the current leader of the guild had done. She was able to kill 3 deer with one arrow. She was then immediately promoted to being leader because of her amazing skill and has helped make the Hunting Arrows one of the richest groups in all of Crimea.
Magic
Everyone in Crimea and beyond has some way to access magical power no matter how small, however using spells comes with a cost. If you use too many spells or you use a spell that requires more magical output then your body can produce, you will die from the overexertion. You will also die if you try to raise someone from the dead as the effort required to do that will send you into the abyss yourself. Spells can range from the generic, fire for example, to the precise like making something sharp. It all depends on what your mind thinks of the spell. Generic spells give more room for your mind to think of creative possibilities. For example, fire can be interpreted as a fireball, a wide cone of flame, lighting something on fire or even making a flaming arrow.
Magic power is measured in units called Angel hearts which derives its name from specific stones. These stones have the unique property to light up when they come into contact with a person or an object that possesses magical power no matter how slight. These stones are blue and are shaped in the shape of a heart, hence the name. If an Angel heart comes into contact with more magical power then it can hold it will either release the excess power into the surrounding environment, or release it into another Angel heart. That is how Crimea and the other kingdoms measure magical aptitude. The scale is as follows.
A Level: 60-70 Angel Hearts- This level has only been reached once in a kingdom’s history. The only person to have ever attained such power was the fiendish warlock Melchior. He tormented the kingdom for decades until a band of 6 heroes rose together and defeated him. Since then no one has reached this level in all of Desia.
B Level: 50-60 Angel Hearts- Only the strongest dragons posses this power.
C Level: 40-50 Angel hearts- The Elf Queen possesses this kind of power.
D Level: 30-40 Angel hearts- Stronger Elvin sorcerers as well as most nymphs and dragons possess this kind of power. The king’s head magician also possesses this level of power.
E Level: 20-30 Angel hearts- Most sorcerers in the employ of the king as well as weak Elvin sorcerers possess this power.
F Level: 10-20 Angel hearts- Weak sorcerers as well as card trick magicians possess this amount of magical power along with most of the elves and some of the dwarfs.
G Level: 1-10 Angel hearts- Most humans and some dwarfs fall into this category.
H Level: 0 Angel hearts- This is reserved for animals (excluding dragons) and people who for some reason were stripped of all their magical power, effectively blinding them to it.
The Roleplay:
Well the basic plot is that the head magician of the king of Crimea wants to usurp the throne and create a totalitarian government ruling all over the continent which the Crimeans know as Desia. Now the only people that stand in his way are a few Crimean citizens from all walks of life. Along the way the other races will have their share of problems, whether those problems are being stirred up by Hessin or not. You may choose whether or not you respond to those problems. Now on with the rules. As well, I will choose the person who has the best profile to be the hero. That hero will have certain unique qualities to him/herself that won't be disclosed to the other roleplayers. The main character will not be I to avoid bias. To help everyone get started I’m assuming everyone will start in the capital.
Cloaks of Darkness:
- Neonfite- Brutal_Sarah
Clerics of Ilicid:
Hunting Arrows:
Crimean Army:
- Parabola
Anderan
Other:
- Queen Estil Narenth of Grandia the elf kingdom- Parabola
Rules
1. No God-modding or meta-gaming.
2. You can suggest a new race for your character but you must provide a description of the race alongside it. The only races I will definitely not accept are vampires, werewolves and hybrids (mixtures of other races)
3. This will be a literate role-play. 3 paragraphs at the minimum for each person’s post.
4. If your character dies, just make a new one. Let your character die if it makes sense.
5. No txt talk. Make your posts understandable to everyone.
6. This role-play has a PG-13 rating. Violence and romance is accepted and expected but take anything further then that to PMs.
7. I'm the GM. My word is law and I reserve the right to kick you out if you break a rule or if you don't meet the expectations.
8. Take any arguments you may have with other players to PMs or straight to me.
9. I'm limiting everyone to D Angel heart level. Bare in mind I will only allow a max of two more characters at this level
- Code: Select all
[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Age:[/b]
[b]Race:[/b] Human
[b]Appearance:[/b] (Describe your character in words or post a picture)
[b]Personality:[/b]
[b]Faction:[/b]
[b]Angel hearts:[/b]
[b]Weapons/Equipment:[/b] (Be reasonable, your character cannot carry every single weapon and item on the face of Crimea)
[b]Spells:[/b] (Again be reasonable, if you have 1 Angel heart's worth of magic you won't know any spells because you are too weak to practice them)
[b]Enhancements:[/b] (Only for the Cloaks of Darkness and again be reasonable. Depending on your position in the guild you may have 1, 2 or even 3 enhancements. As for what kinds of enhancements, well you can think of some on your own can’t you?)
[b]History:[/b] (At least 2 paragraphs)
Here's my character.
Name: Hessin Kulitz
Age: 35
Race: Human
Appearance: Hessin is a very imposing man with a pretty stocky build from workouts to improve the amount of energy he has in his body to perform spells. He usually wears a purple vest over top of a light green cotton shirt with ruffles at the edges of his sleeves. His pants are also of a cotton variety but they are died deep green. Hessin wanted to look like a peasant to blend in if he ever needed to escape. His hair is deep brown, just like dirt. His eyes are deep blue and he has a small scar that turns from under his right eye down to the edges of his mouth that stretched when he smiles.
Personality: Hessin is usually kind and caring but when faced with adversity, he will do whatever he needs to do to help another person. He doesn’t even consider tat his actions are wrong. In his eyes the ends justify the means no matter what those means may be. Whenever he does something that he believes he has to do but he knows is wrong, he will get very solemn and quiet as if mourning the people his actions may inadvertently harm.
Faction: Crimean Army
Angel hearts: 40
Weapons/Equipment: The finest bow and arrow that the king could afford. The bow is made from the finest woods in all of Crimea and the so are the arrow shafts. The tips of the arrow are made from shards of Angel hearts. He uses the Angel heart shards to help channel his magic.
Spells:
Fire
Sharpness of the Blade- Makes any weapon you are using either sharper or duller depending on the user’s whim
Plant
Barrier- can make a magical or physical barrier depending on which type of attack the user wants to block
Enhancements: N/A
History: Hessin grew up in a family of human criminals that had fled to the Grandia because the father was convicted of being a murderer. Whether that’s true or not has never been conclusively proven. The elves believed that they were falsely accused so the humans were given sanctuary in Grandia. That is where they gave birth to Hessin. Early on it was known that he had magical power greater then both of his parents combined. He even had more magical power at a young age then the elf children he played with. His parents believed he would grow to be a successful sorcerer, free from his parent’s chains.
So when Hessin was of age, his mother and his father brought him to the entrance to the beginning of the mountain path that leads to the outside world from their end. They then left him at beginning the path with enough food and water to last the trip to the capital. He reluctantly went on the trip but he never stopped crying once he started as he missed his parents so much. It took him over a week but he finally made it to Frestill. The world surprised him. The capital was much bigger then the small elf city that he had lived in up to that point. As per standard protocol he was tested immediately before entering the city. They found his magical power staggering so he was brought before the king. The king also recognized his power and so enlisted him to become one of his magicians. He quickly rose through the ranks discovering new ways to use spells no humans had ever thought of before. But he is on the brink of discovering a new spells altogether. What could that spell be? Well we’ll have to find out won’t we?