:: Dungeons and Discourse - A Philosophical Dungeon Crawl Roleplay ::

"Trouble brews in the north. As far back as man can remember, the north has always been portrayed as a cold, inhospitable place in humanity's collective consciousness. An arid, frozen wasteland filled with savage beasts and brutal creatures, nameless terrors better left forgotten. Tales often speak of unspeakable eldritch entities, deranged madmen and bloodthirsty warlords, all coming from this mythical direction. Every decade or so, it seems to spawn a new insane death priest, undead overlord or savage horde of barbarians descending southward in hopes of conquering the known world, only to have their plans almost immediately foiled by an archetypal group of heroes. It is a grim, unforgiving place, ruled only by violence and bloodshed. It is not to say, however, that it does not have its appeals. To the enterprising philosopher, the north can yield phenomenal rewards, harvested from the ruins of forgotten dungeons and demolished castles. Rare philosophical artifacts, unique treatises and marvellous treasures, all left behind by the land's previous occupants. No one is truly sure of where exactly the north actually is, for it doesn't actually appear to be a tangible geographical location, more of an abstract idea. All that is known is that, if you head north away from the civilised world for long enough, you will eventually happen upon the small border town of Arsend village, regardless of where you actually came from. This village is the last refuge of civilisation before you finally venture into the north. Likewise, when one wants to return to the south, if they walk in that direction long enough, they will inevitably return to Arsend eventually. This makes the town a veritable hotspot for merchants and treasure hunters alike, and its only inn often finds itself filled to the brim with travellers. It is almost perpetually inhabited by a considerable number of traders, eagerly seeking to profit from the adventure seekers returning from the wild lands. Quest givers, people wanting things done for them in exchange for currency, are also unusually common here. It is, incidentally, where your adventure begins. You and your group have just returned from a modest yet successful trip to a small dungeon which was recently discovered in the north, and you have only returned here a day or two ago. Eager to unload some of your loot, rest and get your hands on some fresh equipment, you dispersed throughout the town, planning to regroup in a few days once you have recovered."

-+-

- Character Sheet -

Name: Your character's name. Can be either mundane or unusual.

Nationality: Your character's cultural identity. Most often reflects their class. (Greek, French, Chinese, English, German, etc..)
Class: Your character's philosophical school of thought. (Sophism, Positivism, Humanitarianism, Existentialism, etc..)
Alignment: Empirical, Rational, Relativist, Evangelical, etc... Whatever you think best suits your character.

Ego: What your character looks like, their appearance. Heavily affected by their mentality and perception of self.
Essence: What your character truly is, their personality. What gives them the basis for their identity.

Arsenal: Your character's weapons and tools. (Rapier wit, Occam's Razor, Shield of Faith, Diogenes' lantern, The Cutting Edge of Technology, Rhetorical Hammer etc... )
Equipment: Usable items your character might have, such as supplies or other consumables. (Golden apples, Irrational numbers, Primordial soup, Lucky coin, Sparks of genius, silver lining, etc..)

Abilities: Concepts your character might invoke to give you an edge in various situations. (Zeno's paradox, Selective Perception, Aponia, Existential Dread, Whitewash, Murphy's Law...)

Skills: (Ever character starts with twelve [12] points to distribute between the three core skills and twenty four [24] for the secondary ones. Level one costs one point, level two costs two, level three costs four, level four costs six, level five costs eight, level six costs twelve...)

Credibility:*/6
Charisma: */6
Conviction: */6

Rhetoric: */6
Logic: */6
Image: */6
Research: */6
Manipulation: */6
Knowledge: */6

Backstory: Your character's background.
Secret Objective: Unique to each player. Do not include this into your character sheet, but rather send it via private messaging. This will be your character's own personal motivations during an adventure. For a humanist, that might involve helping others, while for a more religiously inclined character, it could be simply spreading their gospel. Players will be gaining subtle rewards for completing tasks related to their objective.

-+-

Additional notes:
+Characters begin the game with a maximum of one weapon, three miscellaneous items and 100 Kudos (Currency).
+As mentioned in the intro however, your characters have just returned from a short journey into the North. As a result, you may either start with either ten additional items or 1500 Kudos.
+Characters are currently free to roam the town for traders or quest givers. Feel free to start your own sub-plots here or later on.
+Unless requested otherwise, the roleplay will be taking place over a wide variety of locations, and will not be using the north other than as back story.
+Feel free to speak if you have any questions or comments you would like to share.
+Most importantly, as always, have fun! :D
+And remember, the sillier the better.

- Character List: -

+ Credendo Vides - Essence
+ Irene Viscardi - Kentsukan
+ Freida the Slip - Gordian Nought
+

Name: Irene Viscardi
Nationality: Italian-Greek
Class: Dark Cynicism
Alignment: Evangelical

Ego: Irene's hair is black and her eyes are green. She isn't beautiful, but she has a warm face. She stands a little short of average height, and is on the skinny side. She wears a grey robe covered with a black leather chest piece and shoulder guards. There is a slit cut into the robes so that she may walk more easily; the robe itself falls to her ankles. Behind the robe is a suit of black chain mail for protection. She wears black gloves and boots along with her clothes, although she wears no headgear or jewelry.
Essence: Irene means well, but believes that her philosophy justifies any morally questionable actions she does (besides, who needs morality?). While she wholeheartedly believes in the Dark Side of Cynicism, she can sometimes be naïve of the world, ironically making her guilty of the naïveté that she despises and accuses others of. Still, she is aware of this, and actively seeks to rid herself of it. She is generally pleasant, but sarcastic.

Arsenal:
- Diogenes' Lantern: A simple bronze lantern, unassuming in appearance. It essentially acts as a lie detector, however, it cannot detect the lies of anyone with high manipulation or charisma. Otherwise, it glows a bright light that is helpful for travel.

Equipment:
- An annotated copy of Machiavelli's "The Prince.": Acts as her "holy book."
- Lucky silver coin: A boost of luck (Fortuna) to the holder.
- Diogenes, her dog: Around the time Irene finished her studies, she encountered a merchant with a border terrier and her puppies. For a favor, Irene picked the smallest puppy of the bunch, with grey and white fur. She named him Diogenes, and he has been her adored companion since then.

Abilities:
- Whitewash: A counter to scientific evidence, where she uses sophisms or blunt zealotry to overturn it. Is ineffective against those with high credibility and knowledge. -- "Well we're not going to just sit here and listen to you bad mouth the Constitution! Gentlemen!"
- Deus Deceptor: Irene appeals to the darker desires of her target, and to assist with this, she creates a compelling illusion. This illusion can affect any of the five senses. Is ineffective against those with high conviction and logic.
- Cynic's Bite: Diogenes attempts to bite a friend or foe. Against foes, Diogenes questions whether the foe should be a philosopher to begin with. Does not work against very powerful philosophers. With friends, Diogenes attempts to heal an ally's conviction. -- "Other dogs bite their enemies. I bite my friends to save them."

Skills:

Credibility: 3/6
Charisma: 3/6
Conviction: 3/6

Rhetoric: 3/6
Logic: 3/6
Image: 3/6
Research: 2/6
Manipulation: 4/6
Knowledge: 2/6

Backstory: The Cynic Order has no emblem, nor does it openly recruit and boast about itself. In fact, the Order used to be made up of "Light Cynics"; Cynics who strove to live simple lives, free of worldly matters and desires. But a sect of Cynics began to look towards the darker side of Cynicism; doubt, and the darker side of human nature. These Cynics came to the conclusion that no matter what was done, humans would always be inclined towards evil and base desires. If humans would wallow in their bases, who were they to deny them? In fact, why not use them? And thus the school of Dark Cynicism began, and a schism erupted in the Order. All Cynics are taught Light Cynicism, but they must venture into the Dark Side on their own; it is entirely their choice.

Irene entered the Cynic Order at the age of two, although it would be more accurate to say she was adopted into it. Within its simple halls, she owned nothing but her grey robes, and the large ceramic jar she slept in. It was a friend who introduced her to Dark Cynicism, and she had been a secret adherent since then. She portrays herself as an adherent to Light Cynicism.

Secret Objective: What would be the point in telling if it's a secret? Off with you, nosy people!

So invigorating!

Anyone want to be a beauty to my beast? Just PM me. :)

aye, I shall reserve a spot also

Oh my god, the currency is named kudos... xD Augh, this gun' be good.

Anyway, what is the actual difference between charisma and credibility? I imagine that a charismatic enough character will be able to persuade people anyways.. is credibility some sort of 'default mana amount' thing?

Charisma would be the skill most used by religiously inclined characters, acting a bit like dexterity in a traditional dnd game. Credibility would be most used by science based characters, acting roughly as a substitute for strength. Conviction is essentially durability.

Is a character only allowed one special weapon and a generic one? And do we have to provide descriptions for a weapon's special abilities (if any) and character abilities?

Your character is only allowed one main special weapon to start with, although some of the 10 items they might chose to keep could be weapons. It would be appreciated if you described briefly what it does and looks like, though it is by no mean mandatory. Most weapons in the world are special in some way or other. You may have other side weapons as part of your starter items as well.

Also, you dont have to use all your skill points right away, you may save some for leveling up later on...

Hmm... Is magic acceptable in this universe, or is combat going to be physical? I was planning to make a dark magician/necromancer with powers based on the Jungian Shadow - will that work or will I have to alter it?

I suppose that could work, if you feel you can handle it, feel free to go for it... :D
Although most characters will possess some measure of unusual abilities, some will fufill more stereotypically "mage roles" than others.

Name: Credendo Vides (aka Rolfe Zealot)

Nationality: Visigoth

Class: Philoso-Logician
Alignment: Empirical ("The world is everything that is the case.")

Ego: A large, broad-shouldered man of wild black mane and beard. Wears furs and carries barbarian-ish weaponry, but has intense eyes that scrutinize and analyze everything around him, and speaks with a startlingly arch tone and vocabulary.

Essence: Firmly grounded in observable reality and in the grim grittiness that it comes with. Obsessed with language and how it and the world mutually affect one another.

Arsenal: Question Axe, Cleaver of Nonsense, Imaginary Bow w/ Arrows of Memory, Childhood's Instinctive Fur of Abandonment.

Equipment:

• Truth Tables (Acts as a portable table, also dispells illusions on any object set on the table.)
• Balance of Probability (A scale that will tip when asked a yes/no question...or just to weigh things.)
• Food for Thought (just food)
• Liquid Lunch (beer)

Abilities:

• Understanding Creates Reality (used to deliberately misunderstand a situation using homophones or ambiguity and actually alter the situation based on the misunderstanding)
• I Axed You a Question (A melee attack that gets stronger the more profoundly Essence-challenging the question asked simultaneously is. For example, may slay a solipsist if the question is "why do you create suffering in your own life?")
• The Dick in Dichotomoy (All facts are either true or false; there is no grey area. Forces people around him to recognize that fact and respond accordingly. Most often used to force dying people to hurry up and be dead.)

Skills:
Credibility:3/6
Charisma: 2/6
Conviction: 4/6

Rhetoric: 2/6
Logic: 5/6
Image: 2/6
Research: 2/6
Manipulation: 4/6
Knowledge: 3/6

Backstory: Credendo Vides, born Rolfe Zealot of the Barbarian Tribes, spent a goodly part of his youth doing everything he could to hide his background. Captured at an early age and raised as a slave in the ludicriously rich Cesearan Section of Ninopolis, he believed for a very long time that his people were backwards, stupid, and dirty.

When he escaped from the city, he discovered that the barbarian tribes were more and more respected the farther from the city he became. He discovered that the same words the city-folk used to denegrate the tribes were now spoken with reverence. He realized that language wasn't a fixed thing -- and that thoughts changed as language changed.

He devoted himself to the study of the world, the languages used to describe the world, and the inner concepts that the languages conveyed. Today, he seeks the wilder places of the world, always looking to expand his vocabulary and thus his ability to understand and manipulate the world around him.

Secret Objective: Credendo's objective isn't secret from anyone: he'll tell anyone who happens to listen that his goal is nothing short of the dismantling of the Great Southern Civilization and the uniting of the Barbarian Tribes into the great political power of the known world.

Credendo Vides is accepted! :D

Irene Viscardi is looking good as well for now. Looking forward to seeing the finished application.

I think I'm going to call it done! Though I'm a tad confused on the points part for skills. How many points do I have left over, if any?

Alright, I'll add the character to the list. Simply send me her secret objective via private message.

Done!

I'll get a profile up at some point soon, definitely still interested.

Hey... does anybody know the name of the philosophy stating that there is a 'true' reality outside of our consciousnesses, but that we are incapable of understanding it due to the limitations of our senses and cognitive abilities? I know there is one. I just can't for the life of me find the name.

Wulfenheart said
Hey... does anybody know the name of the philosophy stating that there is a 'true' reality outside of our consciousnesses, but that we are incapable of understanding it due to the limitations of our senses and cognitive abilities? I know there is one. I just can't for the life of me find the name.

I think it's called Transcendental Idealism, by Kant.

Err... Are you all still working on character sheets or should we just give up on this RP?
I don't mind if you decided to drop out, but I would greatly appreciate it if you simply stated it outright if you did, rather than keep us waiting pointlessly. I understand real life, writer's block, lack of inspiration or loss of interest can get in the way. Just say so, however, don't just vanish silently.