• _Azra
  
  
  The biggest and most politically driven continent, Azra is home to the capital city Armistice which is often nicknamed the "Capital of the World". Armistice is the birthplace of the Intercontinental Coalition and is the only untouched city from The Catastrophe. Why this is no one knows, but the ICC uses this fact as a way to entice people to move into its walls as the more people move in, the more taxpayer money there is to play around with. Azra is also home to the merchant city of Cirella, a city that used to distribute an overwhelming majority of goods across the world. Now the city is the trade and commerce central of Zenith despite the fact that most places how their own merchant districts.
• _Eteria
  
  
  Eteria is the eastern neighbor of Azra, but it is also half the size. In pre-Catastrophe times, it was a continent that didn't concern itself with politics much though they still had someone elected to the ICC to serve the few interests they did have. Sorei is the capital though the walls are now gone and the entire city is under martial law. This began as the result of a coup that was successful due to the beast attacks. Of course, this "military" that holds the city in martial law is really composed of mercenaries, former soldiers, bandits, and thugs who took advantage of the situation to gain power over an entire city. Orpheius is a small--yet big for a town--town located on the other side of the continent.
• _Scion
  
  
  Scion is south of Eteria and southeast of Azra and is roughly the size of Eteria. It is where scholars are born and thought to congregate. Their political prowess is just under Azra and that is only because they lack the sheer number of people Azra is home to. Scion Prime is the captial city and, though it was partially destroyed during the beast attacks, it was rebuilt remarkably quickly. This diligence is due to the fact that Scion never employed a true military because they knew it would only promote war and this decision actually allowed them to avoid most of what they called the pointless wars of the older times. The Outer Ring is name given to a ring of residential areas surrounding Scion Prime where those who aren't as mentally gifted reside.
  
  These people are looked down upon by those who live in Scion Prime and the class division between the two still exists even in the present age.
• _Goro
  
  
  Goro is west of Azra and was home to one sprawling kingdom before the onslaughts. Taurus is the capital, and only, city remaining on the entire continent. Taurus used to be home to the strongest military in all of Zenith, but they were completely eviscerated at the hands of the beasts when the attacks first began. The arrogance of the people and their status never made them any allies and when the attacks first broke out in the area, no one was willing to help because they it'd simply be a contained attack on Goro alone. Taurus is now simply a ruin of what was once a sprawling stone metropolis. There are a few who have traveled to Goro in an attempt to begin a restoration of Taurus at least, but no one has heard from these few again.
• _Markovia
  
  
  Markovia is southwest of Goro and the furthest away from Azra, but it is Azra's direct rival in war and size. Markovia is just a bit smaller than Azra as a whole, but there are far more people there and the area is a bit more dense than the lands of Azra. Though Markovia holds political interest, they have mostly expressed themselves through war with Azra. They were slated to be the original birthplace of the ICC until plans were changed and the people were incensed. Emeril City is the capital and rivals Armistice in size. Since the military there is no longer sanctioned by the ICC, it is not official, but it also rivals that of Armistice.
  
  The Centre is an institution near Emeril City that is just big enough to call itself a city. It functioned as a military academy of sorts before the wars, but now it is a ruin in the style of Taurus. Completely abandoned by people, The Centre became overrun with various creatures and plant life. There are those who still venture out to acquire the books and scrolls left there after hundreds of years, but none of them ever seem to return.
  
  Rian is a relatively new city in Markovia. It is currently being built to serve as a replacement capital for Emeril City. After the beast attacks, Markovians realized how vulnerable they were and sought to build a place that could stand up to such attacks should they happen again. However, because of the lack of resources and the collapse of the overall economy there, in the years since the city began being built, there is not much work done. It is livable at the moment, but nowhere near as grand as Emeril City.

• _Magic
  
  
  Though magic exists in the world of Zenith, it does not function in the conventional way one would expect. Magic exists in the atmosphere of the planet itself and does so at all times like the air humans breathe. Unlike air however, magical energies are not naturally taken into the body. Through concentration and knowledge of how to attune one's body correctly, magical energies can be absorbed into the body and manipulated into various forms and manifestations. The energy itself has the capability to become just about anything at all so it usually only takes a focused thought to form and mold the energy to one's will. What was discovered was that the energy itself is poisonous to the human body.
  
  Magical poisoning occurs in degrees dependent upon how much is used and over what time period. A single individual creating a massive fire spell or something with large scale would probably end up near-death or killed immediately. An individual using magic for menial tasks or in small, personal, scale offense or defense would still be poisoning themselves, but it would be in a much smaller dose. A team of individuals creating a large scale spell could work in theory, but each person involved would still be absorbing a large amount of poison afterwards. Basically, any use of magic poisons the body, but--and most similar to smoking a cigarette--using magic in small doses can allow a person to use it for years though they are still slowly killing themselves.
  
  Because of these facts, there are no true wizards in the world. Most people who use magic do so for trivial tasks and warriors who use magic usually form smaller manifestations such as the occasional fireball or enchanting a shield so it's better in defense for example.
• _{True Combat System}
  
  
  In order to enforce the dangers of everything in this world and encourage players to keep things grounded combat wise, I've come up with what I call the True Combat System. Now, I'd say this is more of a guideline than a system that forces you to write one way. Trust me, I hate battle systems in roleplays that force a player to write certain way. This is a system that attempts to mimic the weight of armor and weapons in battle. It's a pretty simple mechanic.
  
  Each character will have a Stamina Rating and HP (HP is posted at the top of every IC post). The stamina rating will read "4/4" or some such at the top of a player's post (the number can vary depending on armor worn) only during battle posts. Each battle post will decrease the left number by one unless the battle post is the character literally doing nothing. This number represents the stamina of the character as they fight. When the number hits 0, attacks become weaker and that character becomes less effective in battle. The rating is replenished after two posts with "0", but the timing of that fatigue could prove costly depending on the battle.
  
  HP is simply Hit Points or your character's life. HP varies depending on the type of armor worn (Armor types are in the character sheet). Every attack on a player character causes HP to be lost, but the amount will depend on the armor worn. There are only two types of armor so it's nothing complicated and the value lost when attacked is fixed based on the enemy attacking--meaning that an enemy type will always take away the same amount of HP.
  
  As you'll notice, this system does not enforce a strict writing style. You are free to creatively write your battle scenes as you see fit with the only regulation being keeping it grounded (think less backflip sword strikes and more fighting like a person wearing armor wielding a weapon with actual heft). As the GM, I'll be roleplaying the NPC enemies so all you have to worry is your character's actions in combat.

• _{The God Eaters}
  
  
  The God Eaters [+]

  The God Eaters--an independent order of Knights founded over 1,000 years ago. Born of the fires of war and chaos, the founding members who are remembered as the Council of the Ravenous shared a belief in the coming of the terrible beasts. These knights believed without a doubt that the power over magic and immense physical strength and speed the beasts held must be within their essence; if they ate such terrible beasts they would gain incredible power. This belief was eventually expanded upon as the order grew until it was no longer just beasts. Any opponent who was considered worthy would be eaten and their strength would become the Eaters. They firmly believe that eating one who has gained the God-like immunity to the poison of magic would allow them to gain this power as well.
  
  The order has since grown in size and infamy. Many believe their... Beliefs and rituals to be occult-ish; they are Knights in name alone and cannibalistic cultists in reality. In order to both maintain their armor and weapons, the Great Fort, and food and drink they are a mercenary order though they have been known to occasionally turn on an employer who does not pay well enough to their standards or who they find particularly strong--or if they feel their Order-wide quest would be better served by devouring all those nearby.
  
  It is said, they had a hand in the conquering of Sorei. Though they have not claimed such, many say their banners fly at its capital and that the Brigands and sellswords who took it could not have done it so easily without them. Of course people say many things in these times and no one can know for certain.
  
  Their armor is the same as Erickson's though they all wear red cloth throughout their armor and a blood red cloak to represent the blood of Gods. Their sigil, a Ravenous many-toothed mouth of gold, is emblazoned on their shields and cloak.
  
  All God Eaters are eaten by their comrades after their death. It is seen as a great duty to return ones strength to the order after their death. ~ Created by agentmanatee
• _{The Enclave}
  
  
  The Enclave [+]

  The Enclave
  The Enclave is a strictly non-military order of historians and healers. Women are forbidden from joining the order, and males are groomed since birth to lead the various positions of The Enclave's structure and encourage The Enclave stands for ages to come. The Enclave has managed to stand uninterrupted for more than 2 centuries and is a firm ally of the ICC, offering periodic tributes to the ICC. To the smallfolk, The Enclave consistently encourages loyalty to the ICC throne, and patronage to scholarly pursuits.
  
  Children and orphans are often abandoned by their parents on the doorstep of The Enclave. The order would raise the orphaned boys as scholars and cupbearers to nobility, in exchange for their complete life's devotion to The Enclave. The boys complete their studies in any of the massive libraries within Scion Prime, and are forced to do manual labor in service of The Enclave as well, but most lead a slightly better life than the smallfolk and peasantry do.
  
  After the scribes turn 25, they have the choice of continuing to serve The Enclave -- most do -- or to be ripped away from any semblance of stability they had, and cast out into the cruel world. The order regularly threw out men who questioned the direction The Enclave was taking in the world, due to current events. Members that were too radical and sought war, were excommunicated from The Enclave.
  
  Men who choose to leave the order are never welcomed back, for to stop the pursuit of knowledge is a sin unforgivable.
  
  Although The Enclave has many allies, including blacksmiths, knights, sea merchants and noblemen, they themselves are fully unarmed and have no militia. They hold no swords in their armories, only books. On the surface, the scholars of The Enclave shun war and encourage a pacifist lifestyle between the different continents, even between Markovia and Azra. They highly discourage the use of Magic and believe that studies into the arcane mysteries are mostly a waste of time, but knowledge of metallurgy, politics, construction and gardening are all worthwhile pursuits, since they advance mankind and allow us to sustain ourselves and future generations. ~ Created By DOOM TEA
• _{The Order of the Burning Light}
  
  
  The Order of the Burning Light [+]

  The Order of the Burning Light is an organization of warrior-healers based out of the capital city of Armistice, where they have their impressive Temple. The Order was founded in the years following The Catastrophe, out of a need to protect the common citizen against the horrors that were introduced into the world then. Their ranks are largely filled by the abandoned souls of the world, children either given up by their parents or left without family due to violence. All Order members must be trained from a young age, and adhere to a strict code of servitude to the common good.
  
  The Order is widely respected, though some of its members are openly feared. While some members are dedicated healers and protectors, peacekeepers and judges, others serve as hunters of evil, purifiers of the corrupt and the wicked. Regardless of their path, all Order members face a difficult road, one that almost certainly leads to an early death. In addition to facing down the worst the world has to offer, Order members heavily practice magic, willingly taking on its negative effects on the body in order to take advantage of its benefits. The life of an Order brother or sister is most commonly short, and bloody. Often they take on the tasks that the local armies and organizations wish to avoid. Aspirants and Decani are highly sought after as escorts for caravans, or even just travelers who cannot protect themselves. They'll gladly work together with armed forces to combat threats from beasts, but will take no part in political conflicts of any kind.
  
  Despite the many dangers, they enjoy a variety of benefits for their service, often including the goodwill of the common people. At the Temple, they are granted food, shelter, protection, companionship, and more, things hard to come by in the world's dark times. Some even become revered as heroes for their deeds, and gather loyal followings of those that idolize them, at least until their enemies or their magic claims their lives, at which point their bodies often become relics to their sworn servants.
  
  Ranks of the Order of the Burning Light:
  

  • Novus - One in the process of physical training and mastery of the Order's ways and code. Typically children, to an upper limit of around 13 or 14.
  • Disciple - One who has begun their magical training, in both combat and healing magic. Typically ages 14-20.
  • Aspirant - One who has completed the forging of their personal sword, and departed from the Temple to begin their service to the people. Typically achieved by age 21. Aspirants often work in groups to increase their chances, though feats of individual valor are the quickest way to advance in the ranks. Thoughts of glory have driven no small amount of Aspirants to untimely demises.
  • Decanus - One who has achieved a notable victory or feat of valor in their travels and trials, as determined by a Preceptor of the Order. Typically requires the vouching of a witness, not in the Order, to the deed. Many perish before reaching this rank.
  • Preceptor - An instructor of the Order, almost always a Decanus, Venator, or Justicar who has been physically injured in their service and is no longer able to fight. Teaches the lower ranks, and judges the Aspirants.
  • Venator - A rare rank of the Order, given to warriors that prove themselves supremely effective in combat. Typically given special assignments by the Archon until death or crippling injury occurs, at which point most become Preceptors.
  • Justicar - A rare rank of the Order, given to healers and peacekeepers that prove themselves supremely effective in the Order's more peaceful practices. Typically given special assignments by the Archon until no longer capable, at which point most become Preceptors.
  • Signifer - A special title only given to Order members that, through their service, acquire the loyalty of and lead an armed following of at least fifteen members. These followers are considered honorary members of the Order, but cannot rise above the rank of Novus, and typically are loyal to the Signifer, not the Order itself. Rarely more than a few of these exist at any time.
  • Archon - The leader of the Order of the Burning Light. Responsible for the management of the Venators and Justicars, and the choosing of the Preceptors. Serves until death, and typically forgoes further use of magic to prolong their command and aid in maintaining stability in the Order. Upon death, a vote is held to elect the next Archon. All Venators, Justicars, Preceptors and Signifers are eligible to become Archon. ~ Created By Luminosity
• _{The Gaki}
  
  
  The Gaki [+]

  

  T H E G A K I

  
  ^{"The world is the bedlam of our despair, our pain and will and the eternal grace of our death.
  The realm is ours to pillage and violate, the blood of sins cementing our right. Our pain is righteous, our retribution and penance.
  We are meant to inherit the will of the Gods; we are meant for immortality."
  THEME.}

  ---

  
  

  Few are aware of the existence of the Gaki, and those whom are knowledgeable of the particular cult have either been sworn into the depravity and cruelty or have suffered for their curiosity by being laden with scars of silence and misfortune in the forms of sigils, and have been robbed of their waggling tongue. The Gaki have sired themselves on the belief of destruction that equates to purification, and have founded this conceptualism on the histories of ruins and the Catastrophe that saw the Realm renewed. It's difficult to date the founding of the Gaki, as though it appears that they have always been, but never quite arising into public domain. Lost within the ruins of Goro, it's only known that something lurks in the forlorn state with ominous dread and pure agony that reaps the land with memory of death and ruin. They've constructed their unification of pain and blood on the bones of the dead and ashen remains of those long since past by the tooth and claws of the monsters they revere.
  
  The Gaki believed in the purposes and results of the Catastrophe from many years past, equating it to the method of cleansing the realm to purge the undeserving, the blasphemers that could not respect that Gods had fallen to the world to rid them of their unworthy lives. The horrific creatures are considered beautiful in their terror and insatiable hungers, their essences fallen from grace and their struggle to finally cleanse the world for their own purposes and herald a kingdom of The Damned. The Gaki bear a peculiar obsession with them, and in that fixation they've conceived the demented repetition that eventually swelled into a horrific tradition that shamed their bodies and twisted their hearts. Back boned by their religious agenda and beliefs, the Gaki have attempted leagues and bounds of experiments through the rituals of Alchemy and magic, and the interwoven techniques are oft taboo and sometimes unimaginable. They lure initiates through empty promises of healing and to take away their blights, offering canyons of literal nothingness to the hopeless and despairing denizens that come away from their homes; lost in wonder and terror.
  
  With their system laden with the darkest of arts, the Gaki believe in the bonding of man and beast, not just through the ceremony of the predator and the prey, but through the prescription of something far darker and cruel. They take away virgins and women of various origins, force them into the processes of cleansing through the pits of Nullification and burning, carving, symbols into the flesh to begin the foundation to the reception of creatures selected by the Preta to conceive the blessings of Chimeras. Children that would serve the matriarch known as the Padmavati who would use these mutated babes to assist the cleansing of the realm. Through various trials and errors, the Gaki have woven a tapestry of sin and maladies that would make the public domain despair by their ambition. Their secrets run deep as grooves through the soul, garnered in mystery, wreathed in shadows and fog and blood.
  
  

  

  
  
  As a glimpse into their rituals, blood is the conduit and the elixir of their desires, sealed within flesh and bone and the shattering of the will and soul. They mar and twist their bodies with various amounts of tools enchanted to leave a silver scar within place, these methods of self-harm seen as beautiful intricacy by ceremonies of mutilation and torture. Each day is meant to be graced with a new scar, and each day pain brings about clarity to their minds often swathed in darkness. Pain means they are aware, pain means to they are alive, and pain means they are capable of completing their quests of power and immortality. They embellish and equip themselves with dull trinkets and jewelry often blessed with the blood and remains of monsters and, sometimes, the remains of those who could not survive the blessings and attempts of the Chimeras.
  
  With their scars, and burns, and riddled skin, they also pierce the flesh with these trinkets, circlets, embedded disks and hooks, using chain to connect and drape over the body in a peculiar fashion. They bind themselves often in leather, cinched tight and use the results of Alchemy practices and blades dipped within ink to mark themselves permanently, each design that weeps ink and blood holding a purpose within the macabre artwork.
  
  Being practitioners of magic, the Gaki are well knowledgeable of their cancer, and have gone to various lengths to attempt purging their bodies laced in taint. They bleed the toxins from their veins, and sometimes force the corruption onto specially selected, pure, girls to drink the blood that is drained from their masters. And, in turn, they reap the blood of these unadulterated children in an act to cleanse themselves, and perform rituals that combine the essences of themselves onto another through means of pain, lust, and often — death. Their magic is particularly of the skin, burdened through touch like a poison that constantly warps the surface area of the membrane and is evident by the ebony discolouration that stains the capillaries sewn through the body. ~ Created By Rockette

@icmasticc do you think the armor in this picture be considered light or no armor?

character image [+]

<Snipped quote by OneWayOut>

That'd probably be no armor at best, although you can use a separate picture of an armor set if you wish her to have one or just note in the CS that she does indeed wear either heavy or light armor if you want her to wear it at all.

Cool @OneWayOut. Just remember what no armor means hehe.

@Rockette - *Grabs shotgun* GET OFF MY LA-- Oh, ahem, I mean welcome to my RP new person I've definitely never met before!

<Snipped quote by icmasticc>

Don't even pretend, you're beyond excited I'm here!

Oh Rockette is here? Sure to be a fun time now.

Though now I think you're stalking me.

Or is it the other way around >.>

I'm committing, but it's 1 am here. I doubt my tired mind would create a strong character at this hour. I'll post tomorrow afternoon or evening. Hope that's not too terribly late.