In this game, we play as the members of a small independent mercenary group in the Mass Effect universe. We’ll go on missions doing escorts, raids, rescues and all sorts of exciting stuff. In addition, you may pursue intrigues of your own during the downtime between jobs. Together we will explore the galaxy and find our place in it.

---

First, let’s take a moment to explain how this will work. I will control some of the NPCs in your path, but the most of the game will be in your hands. The most important NPC I will control is Caesar, your contractor. Almost all of your missions go through him.

Caesar will not accompany you on your missions. He will be the secure spot you return to in between jobs, and will be involved in a separate story-arc which will take place in Omega when you're there.

My function during the missions is to present you with the opposition as well as playing other key characters in the story. You will have control of everything else. Once I've introduced an obstacle, it’s yours to do with as you like; you dictate the pace with which you travel; you may present goals and events of importance to your character or to the party itself; you decide if or when your character dies.

We will keep a constant discussion in this thread to ensure that everyone is happy and understands what's going on in the game thread. If you have a cool idea or want the buildings or ships on a station to look a particular way or whatever, post it here so that we all ay discuss it.

Some tips to make your life easier on the road
1) Assign a leader (or temporary leader) so that things get decided.
2) Be open-minded, don't lock yourself in a no-no situation.
3) Take initiative and use your imagination.
4) Be nice and polite (outside the game, that is).

---

Our story begins on Omega, like most mercenary stories in the galaxy do. You’re part of a newly formed independent band of mercs and have just started taking on jobs. This far, all you’ve got to your name is your half-assed equipment and a cheap rented container to call home. You’re not doing mercenary work because it’s fun. You’re doing it because you’re desperate… and good at killing people.

This is a time of turmoil in the galaxy. All sorts of crazy rumors are circulating. Shepard’s dead. Shepard’s alive. The collectors are stealing people away. The collectors are a myth. There’s a plague in the slums. The plague’s gone. Archangel is a son of a gun. Archangel’s dead. The reapers are coming. There are no reapers. You get the idea.

As for your character, it can be any race in the ME universe (within reason). Human, Batarian, Quarian, Asari, Turian, Drell, Vorcha. Salarian, even Krogan are ok. Geth, Hanar, Elcor and their likes are not. You will begin with pretty shitty gear and a low reserve of credits. The team doesn’t have a ship, but you’ll get there.

When writing your character, you can use your own template for a sheet. Just get the usual stuff in there. And maybe a picture. I’ll trust you on this.

If you want to ask something or discuss an aspect of the gameworld, please do.

Looking forward to playing with you!

Awww yeah, first post. Just a note, as well, my character isn't really leader material but I wouldn't mind running him as such if no one else is up to the task. The missions might just get a little... hectic, haha.

My character:

Basic Information

Name: Citadel Damasca Orlan Seralis Veks (Humanized: Seralis Veks, goes by Veks)
Age: 21
Gender: Male
Race: Salarian
Profession: Hacker/Rigger- Adept at manipulating tech, usually illegally
Homeworld: The Citadel

Physical Information

Picture: Click!

Appearance: Veks is slim and tall, like all Salarians. His skin tone is a greyish-brown, as seen in his appearance pic. His face is relatively unblemished, sporting none of the scars, scratches or scrapes one would normally equate with a mercenary. Veks stands at about 6’3”.

Casual Attire: Veks, when he’s not on duty, is often still in his armor. Only to sleep and on very special occasions does he dress down, in which case he wears a relatively common outfit, a simple, long-sleeved shirt and form-fitting pants. He loves black and usually dresses to show it, though his casual attire may contain the secondary colors of yellow, orange, or red as well.

Battle Attire: Veks’s battle attire is the armor showed in the picture above. He also tends to make use of tech armor if a situation gets really hairy, though he prefers to stay out of the line of fire in the first place. The armor is relatively light, prioritizing speed and flexibility over damage reduction.

Personal Information

Personality: Highly intelligent but lacking in common sense, Veks is a snarky and quick-witted Salarian. Like many of his species, his brain runs very fast, and his mouth is quick to follow. His sarcastic, talk-before-you-think attitude has gotten him into trouble more than once. Veks is also sly and knows how to be tactful and manipulative when the time is right. However, Veks is still young at heart; he is naive about many things in the wider world and has a poor sense of morality, often doing what is beneficial to him without thinking of the consequences his actions have, for others or himself. Randomly, Veks also doesn’t like water, and hates swimming.

History: Veks grew up in a high-end household on the Citadel. His parents were rather wealthy, having connections with the Council, and his ancestors being among the first Salarians to settle on the Citadel. He was provided with top-notch education during his early life, during which he absorbed an enormous amount of knowledge. His forte was technology; Veks tended to eschew art for art’s sake, as he called it, and instead channeled his creativity into technology. From an early age Veks displayed an affinity for science and math, far surpassing other children of his age. He won many awards and was praised by his teachers.

Veks’s life took a turn around his teenage years. Gaining more freedom through young adulthood, Veks began to abuse his intelligence. He started hacking into secured computers, stealing others omni-tools, and other reckless and illegal acts in a mad pursuit of knowledge. At one point, he was caught tweaking a Keeper in order to try to learn more about them and possibly control one remotely. The authorities found out about a string of technological crimes he had committed but, due to his academic prestige, let him get off with a simple slap on the wrist. However, he wouldn’t always be so lucky…

Veks’s hunger for knowledge would eventually get him exiled from the Citadel. One night, Veks broke into a secure area of C-Sec and attempted to hack their computers and steal data. However, he was unaware that he was being tailed and was caught. They threatened to incarcerate him, but his parents were able to pull some strings in order to change the sentence; his parents, in their disappointment with their wayward son, opted to have him exiled from the Citadel, hoping that he would be able to live peacefully elsewhere. Originally, they had planned a trip for him that would take him to a well-respected planet where many scholars would go to continue their education; however, Veks had his own plans. He made his way to Omega, where he was able to continue his relentless pursuit of knowledge without the burden of laws or morales. He quickly learned the ways of the fallen planet, and has successfully stayed clear of Aria’s wrath.

Recently, Veks decided to join a freelance mercenary group, deciding that what he wouldn’t be able to accomplish alone, he should be able to achieve with allies.

Combat Information

Biotic Abilities: Not applicable

Weapons: M-6 Carnifex Hand Cannon- A highly accurate and lethal sidearm. Effective against armor; weak against shields and biotic barriers.

Omni-Tool- Can create many deadly effects through the use of the Omni-Tool. Can create the standard Omni-Blade, as well as a variety of melee-ranged effects: these include an electrical charge, a swath of flame, and a burst of kinetic energy capable of damaging armor and knocking enemies back.

Incinerate- Veks can use the traditional Engineer attack called Incinerate, in which a blast of thermal energy is shot toward an opponent, exploding upon contact. Very effective against armor.

Overload- A powerful tech-shock that disables shields and deals heavy damage to synthetics. Veks is able to use it to disable enemy tech, causing a temporary
malfunction.

Cryo Blast- Another favorite of Engineers, Veks fires a projectile which, upon contact with a surface, will cause the area around it to snap-freeze. Can be used to slow an enemy’s movement or freeze a weakened enemy completely.

Armor: Light Armor- Allows for maximum mobility at the cost of full protection. Could not sustain much direct damage. Generates shields for a small amount of extra protection.

Tech Armor- When the going really gets rough, Veks can activate a rudimentary form of Tech Armor. This light-based defensive measure will provide him with a bit more protection should he be put into a tight spot.

Cool! Character accepted!

Name: Amethi Dedanya

Race: Asari

Age: 56 (Maiden stage)

Profession: Previously a biotic within the ranks of the Asari military, she now uses her potent biotic abilities to do "freelance work" for various organizations on Omega.

Appearance:
Her name refers to amethysts, which her human mother thought her skin tone resembled. She is tall (5'10), and well-muscled, Her shoulders are a little broad, which lends a bit of masculinity to her silhouette, and her torso tapers down to a small waist above her wide hips and thick thighs.

Background: She was born on Ilium to an Asari mother and a human woman. Amethi spent her first 30 years with her parents before tiring of the luxuriant complacency of Ilium. Her need for change, excitement and knowledge of her Asari roots brought her to Thessia where she spent two decades serving in the military, a venture which helped hone her natural biotic abilities as well as her combat skills. Though showing commendable prowess during missions and being a favorite for promotion to commando status, Amethi once again grew restless, this time put off by the strictly regimented lifestyle of the army and the lack of independence. She filed for a hiatus, and then took off to Omega to pursue other interests. She attempted to work as a dancer in Afterlife but found it did not suit her desires for danger and action. During her 3 months there she had met and befriended a handful of mercenaries, and through one of them she found her first mercenary job as a bodyguard for a prominent syndicate leader. Finding this new lifestyle to be invigorating and suited to her tastes, Amethi decided to continue working as a hired gun for the various Omega gangs, eventually finding herself working with a group of freelancers.

Personality: Amethi is still considered a child by Asari standards but she is usually taken seriously by other Asari due to her no-nonsense attitude and brisk manner. She is an Asari of few words, preferring action over speech. However, she is well-spoken when she does communicate, which reflects her high level of intelligence. Though an abundance of humor irritates her, Amethi does attempt it sparingly, usually in the form of dry quips. She focuses most of her mental prowess on gaining knowledge of tactics, politics, weapons modification, and biotics enhancement, and is not too interested in scientific pursuits. What most find surprising about somebody as stoic as Amethi is that she is very imaginative, which she expresses through art and sculpture.

Weapon of choice: She will sometimes use her M-9 Tempest, but relies more heavily on her biotic abilities.
Biotic abilities:
Barrier - Barriers use mass effect fields to protect a user from damage similar to that of a kinetic barrier.
Pull - Generates a mass-lowering field, which levitates enemies into the air.
Slam - Lifts a target and slams them to the ground, inflicting damage.
Shockwave - Sends out a series of explosive biotic impacts in front of the user ignoring any obstacles. It can be unleashed along the ground to launch all enemies in its path into the air, or used against airborne targets. It is worth noting that when Shockwave hits a shielded target it will be stunned for a brief moment, losing a bit of shield depending on your skill's impact force, but won't be thrown into the air.

Also cool! Accepted!

Hello all, this will be my first character on these forums. I hope you don't mind Kurai but I used your format to help me get started. Please let me know if something is overdone or should be fleshed out more.

Basic Information

Name: Brutus Ward
Age: 35
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Profession: Guard for Hire and sometimes Courier of Important Things (Vanguard)
Homeworld: Earth

Physical Information

Appearance: Brutus stands at 6'0" flat with a wide and heavily muscled body. He looks older than he is with his hair a mixture of salt and pepper, kept short and clean shaven. Scars crisscross much of what skin shows and doesn't. The left side of Brutus's face is covered in a burn that lead from his temple to his throat and below the collar.

Casual Attire: Simple civilian clothing good for getting your hands dirty with. Often times it a pair of overall looking pants with lots of pockets and a white grubby t.

Battle Attire: A battered old set of Mercenary Armor, still strong with obvious maintenance.

Personal Information

Personality: Brutus is not the happiest man in the world and is often very quick and to the point to simply end what he sees as needless talk. His laugh sounds like someones engine choking and his sense of humor is sometimes distorted. With those close to him he is very warm and protective, willing to listen to longer conversations, if only to make sure there is no one he needs to hurt.

History: Brutus's story is not one he often shares. Born and raised by half caring relatives on earths back streets, at a young age he was taken away from what little family for having killed another child with his latent bionics. From there he endured many of the hardships that others had, receiving the training to control his powers. When he grew up he joined the armed forces, determined to see more of the galaxy than earths grimy slums.

It was then that he met his friend and squad mate Marco. Both of them were Vanguards assigned to front line assaults on pirates and slavers. For years this bond strengthened as they saved each other countless times when storming hideouts and ships together as the point of the spear. Eventually one particular operation turned nasty and Marco and many others died as they pulled back with no cover. From this Brutus found the drive for the rest of his career in the rescue team known as the Burning Angels.

The Burning Angels were responsible for going into situations either already lost and rescuing survivors or turning routs into covered retreats. Their mission was to strike as hard and fast as possible to create the precious moments necessary for others to pull out. While no engineer during this time Brutus picked up the skills neccesary to fix things for extraction. The remaining years Brutus spent in the military were in this outfit, rising in his position to eventually lead by merit of surviving assault after assault. The causality rate was high and Brutus's ability to walk in hell, kick the devil in the teeth, and run back out with souls on both his shoulders earned him respect.

His time with the squad ended when one rescue attempt failed miserably, his entire squad but him slaughtered on landing, Brutus went berserk and blacked out in a red mist killing everyone, enemies and hostages alike. When they found him he was holding one of the civilian children he was supposed to rescue, weeping into their dead body with blood running down every piece of his armor. For years of saving lives he was not killed but discharged from the military for reasons of mental health. Brutus has spent the last years working as a guard for hire from station to station, slowly spiraling downwards into numbing drink, finally finding himself at the bottom in Omega.

Combat Information

Weapons: Katana Shotgun, M-3 Predator Pistol, A Heavy Hand Axe (Hatchet)

Biotic Abilities:

Biotic Charge
Shockwave
Barrier
Pull

(Do I need to add descriptions? Also is it cool to have Barrier?)

Looks splendid! Accepted!

Fallen of Nine said
Hello all, this will be my first character on these forums. I hope you don't mind Kurai but I used your format to help me get started.

Of course not, Fallen! This template is actually a modified version of a template made by a good friend of mine, so I'm glad to pass it on. Also, I like Brutus quite a bit, though I'm curious to see how he meshes with Veks's overly talkative personality. I'm sure it will be interesting!

I'll edit this post in a bit with a character sheet.

I'd be interested in joining this! I'm working on a CS now!

I'll be making a CS as well, probably up tommorow.

So... what's your status, people?

Well, I'm still here. Maybe give the three above you a day or two more to put up a sheet, otherwise we could just roll with the three of us here? It'd be like an actual game of Mass Effect, haha. Your call though, not sure if you wanted to try with a smaller cast.

I'm ready whenever, check about twice or more a day to see when we start.

I am totally ready, willing and able to submit a different character if the OP deems it so.
Because... Well, for obvious reasons.

Edit: Now, here's an interesting thought:
Provided the RP survives that long, how interesting would it be if the Squad survives past the ME2 campaign, into the ME3 campaign, and becomes a Reaper-Fighting-Force?

Need anymore players I see Mass Effect and am like ready to go.

I'm game, if you need/want more that is.

I'm still here and will post a CS on the weekend.

A bit much equipment-wize, but other than that it's ok. Accepted, both of you.

I'll wait for one more finished application before closing shop and starting the game.

Awesome, and despite the green light I edited down the Thunder to MK1 and switched to a M-3 for the pistol. I would switch the sniper, but I'll write in some defects to keep it from being too over-used or over-powered. And I feel like I should add a note about Aelus's biotics, even as an expert turian biotic his powers don't compare to other races, he's like a weak asari or a moderate human user.