After ten brutal years of WAR, PLAGUE and CONSPIRACY, the AGE OF KINGS has come to an end. Considered the end of the world by most, the YEARS OF DUSK were not the final years of the world, but a prelude to a new beginning. The triad curses of DEATH, CHAOS and DESTRUCTION laid low the ancient empires of the IRON KINGDOMS (a region also known as BOREA). Mutagenic plague tore through the militant KINGDOM OF THULE, leaving it ripe for invasion by the savage tribes of HYPERBOREA. The vast trader-empire of IIRAM was crushed by the unstoppable hordes of the LEMURIA, an army of such size and ferocity that the world had never seen. Though it held valiantly against mutant and barbarian alike, the venerable ATLANTEAN EMPIRE collapsed from within, a violent rebellion at the hands of a dark and disturbing cult. As the last Emperor of Atlantis was stabbed through the heart on his palace steps, the Age of Kings had finally ended, and the AGE OF DAWN began.

It is the 56th year of this new Age, and it is a time of mystery and adventure. In the time following the Years of Dusk, many nascent empires and petty nations have sprung up from the ashes of the fallen kingdoms. Many live outside of the small protection afforded by these fledgling states, struggling to survive in a world rife with danger. Bloodthirsty mutants roam the wilderness, and enclaves of barbarians still pillage and plunder the Iron Kingdoms. The miraculous art of ALCHEMY, once a way of life in the Iron Kingdoms, is on the verge of extinction as its masters fall and its secrets are lost. Whats more, the ancient and mystic power of MAGIC has returned to the world, a force not seen since the time of the OLD GODS and the long-lost AGE OF MYTHS. For every mortal wizard or alchemist that plies their craft, there are countless inhuman monsters or eldritch horrors that wield magic for evil. Strange forces watch the world from realms unseen, and their laughter fills the nightmares of any mortal sane enough to fear them.

However, it is said that the flames of hell forge the strongest steel, and so the strife of the Age of Dawn has given rise to heroes unlike any seen since the Age of Myths. Be they warriors, kings, thieves or scholars, they have risen to become the greatest among men in the Age of Dawn. Their names are on the lips of every peasant that aspires to something greater, and they are cursed by every villain that would drag the world into the depths of damnation. Destiny is shaped by their wills, and their exploits are the stuff of legend. Rumor and mystery surrounds them, and followers flock to them to turn their deeds into myth and their words into scripture.

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Okay, so, this is a reboot of a game I tried to run earlier in the year that unfortunately collapsed because too many of my players left. I consider it to be one of my most ambitious projects, so I would really appreciate a team of players as dedicated as I am.

Anyway, onto brass tacks. The premise is that you the players are these heroes of legend that have risen in the Age of Dawn. You start the game as the greatest among mortals, making your mark on the world in this new age, and things will only get more epic from there. You can think of this as being low-fantasy story that has suddenly been dumped into a high-fantasy setting, with all of the chaos and excitement that comes with it. Influences include Warhammer Fantasy Battles, Exalted, Berserk, Bal-Sagoth and the works of Robert E. Howard and H.P. Lovecraft.

There are a few major themes of the RP that I want to highlight, so bear with me:

Freedom: The shackles of the Age of Kings have been thrown off of the Iron Kingdoms, and so for the first time in thousands of years, many people are free to live as they wish. Life is harder than ever, but its rewards are many. This applies to you the players as well. While there are some backstory-related restrictions, you can make nearly any kind of character you can imagine, and you are free to pursue whatever agenda you so choose. There will be an over-arching plot, but it will not be overwhelming. Consider the setting to be your canvas, and I will accommodate you as best I can. Your characters are meant to be powerful and influential, so your choices will shape the setting, and will be felt by other players.

Hidden Potential: All of the world's secrets are being laid bare for all to see. Magic has returned, in all of its glory and all of its horror. Ancient evils and legendary heroes alike are emerging, and the stage is being set for a battle of cataclysmic proportions. Your characters above all else embody the idea of having secret potential. Even though you are the greatest men and women in the world, that doesn't mean you've peaked. I'd like to think you'd all be surprised by just how much greater your characters can become.

A New Dawn: This roleplay is called Age of Dawn for a reason; ultimately, it is a story of triumph. The dark night is over, and a new, golden era awaits. The setting may seem gritty and dark, but with grim perseverance and strength of heart, good can prevail. All is not lost, one man can make a difference in the Age of Dawn.

With that, I open the floor to you guys. Feel free to assault me with question, comments, ideas or interest.

I'm willing to present the same character, and I can post 1/week as before. It sounds like you're focusing more on the Iron Kingdoms specifically, though that's not a terrible thing for me.

Would you want my character to walk in with a clean slate (I.E. the adventures that she got started on before the first thread poofed)? Would you want me to assume part of that storyline was still true / had happened (robbing secrets from a dark lord's castle)? I'm cool with either.

Might be cool

I'm willing to present the same character, and I can post 1/week as before. It sounds like you're focusing more on the Iron Kingdoms specifically, though that's not a terrible thing for me.

Kind of always was, really, so it won't be any different from what you remember.

Would you want my character to walk in with a clean slate (I.E. the adventures that she got started on before the first thread poofed)? Would you want me to assume part of that storyline was still true / had happened (robbing secrets from a dark lord's castle)? I'm cool with either.

Safiyya filled a niche that we needed in the previous game, so I wouldn't jump right to completely recycling her. So for the moment, I'll just say that it's good to see you back, and feel free to continue to draft character concepts.

Might be cool

I sure hope so.

Definitely interested in this and will probably show this to another guy who will probably be interested. Here's hoping this RP takes off fairly soon.

Hello Dead Cruiser. I am interested in your RP idea. I have no idea what your previous story line consisted of. This is new to me, although the ideas of Post-Apocalyptic Military themed fantasy adventures are right up my alley. I will have to give some thought as to the type of character I create/use.

Like Shorticus, a one post per week rate is perfectly acceptable to me. Friday through Mondays are always best. I am rarely capable of posting in the IC Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday; very busy days.

Definitely interested in this and will probably show this to another guy who will probably be interested. Here's hoping this RP takes off fairly soon.

Fooly cooly. The start of the thread will be relative to the speed at which I gain interest of course, haha. Shouldn't be hard, though, since I've already written up most of what I needed to write.

Hello Dead Cruiser. I am interested in your RP idea. I have no idea what your previous story line consisted of. This is new to me, although the ideas of Post-Apocalyptic Military themed fantasy adventures are right up my alley. I will have to give some thought as to the type of character I create/use.

Like Shorticus, a one post per week rate is perfectly acceptable to me. Friday through Mondays are always best. I am rarely capable of posting in the IC Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday; very busy days.

Don't worry about the previous storyline; consider this to be an utterly fresh, new continuity.

Posting schedule is generally once a week, yes, as that's about as often as I will reply. My DMing style will give each player a personalized response, usually as a part of a weekly "batch post." It's much simpler to see in practice than it is to explain, so just don't sweat it for the time being.

Anywho, for those of you interested, I'm quite interested in hearing your character concepts. Getting a decent character that fits into the setting will probably be the most creatively restrictive part of the RP (though it shouldn't be too bad), so once that's finished we're in the clear.

I'm definitely interested! The return of magic is a plot element I'd particularly like to engage with.

I envision a desert mystic type. He was born to a group of people displaced in the Years of Dusk and pushed to the margins. Nomads in some broken part of the world, scavenging to survive. As the flow of magic back into the world turned from a trickle into a torrent, he exhibited prodigious sorcerous talents. Uncontrollable talents. Talents that manifested in disturbing and dangerous ways. He ran out into the desert late one night, and has spent much of the last two years in a fevered, dream-like state, barely conscious, living like an animal in the vast empty dunes under the desert sky, leaving a trail of strangeness in his wake: sand melted into hills of hieroglyphic-etched glass, boulders carved into perfect spheres, ravines shaped so that the wind blowing through whistles in ringing chords.

It was a hell of a bad trip.

But! I don't really want to play a loner. It would be nice to tie his coming to civilization/lucidity to another character -- whether rescued by them, captured by them, nursed back to health, adopted as a student, etc. His goals largely center around learning more about magic, controlling himself, but also feeding his almost compulsive need to act as a conduit for the raw force of magic flowing back into the world. And fending off the madness (risk of possession?) that acting in that way puts him at risk of.

Anyways, that's a first stab at something. Let me know if you have any comments or suggestions, Mr. GM. I'm not super wedded to this, so if it doesn't seem quite right thematically I can try a different concept out on you.

I'm super interested in this.

My idea for a character is a hunter who bravely travels outside the protections that the small budding nations offer, and single handedly hunts the barbarians, sometimes slaying them an entire group at a time. He's one of, if not the, best sniper in the land. He absolutely refuses to take on apprentices, despite the fact that many people as have asked, mainly due to the fact that a lot of his skill is aided by magic. It is my idea that he was somehow corrupted by magic, giving him enhanced eyesight and that thing they have in stealth games where you can lock on to targets and they'll have a glowing outline that you can see through walls and such, only he can't turn his on or off, the people around him just have a glowing, golden, outline. These magical abilities also warped his eyes, changing them from his original blue, to glowing gold. A lot of the times, he'll walk around with his eyes closed, relying on his other sense to guide him, especially when he's in civilization, because all the glowing people gives him headaches. There's a lot more to him than that of course, but that's the idea I have so far.

@Arborescence I'd be willing to tie my character to yours if you'd like. It might work out pretty well considering they're both a bit messed up by magic. My character more physically, yours more mentally. They could develop a sort of kinship through that.

I am interested, I'm currently toying the idea with a traveling magical scholar/swordsman. The basic idea is a man who spends much of his time traveling in order to both learn and teach. He'd be relatively well known throughout the realms for not only his wisdom, but skill with a blade. As a teacher, he'd likely have a pupil or two following him around to aid him in mundane tasks, and while many have approached him in order to learn swordsmanship, he almost always refuses. Capable of wielding potent light magic in one hand, and a magical blade in the other, he'd be a strong though humble and calm in demeanor. I'm currently debating the type of magic he'll wield, either offenive magic or healing magic- making him either a destructive force, or a defensive guardian.

Having given it thought, I'll happily play a ruler or leader of some kind, since it seems like that's what we're missing.

I'd be down for this.

If possible, I'd like to play a diplomat or negotiator. Not much of a fighter, but someone who wields influence and wealth, forming pacts and agreements to shape things in her favor while offering indirect aid to sides and individuals who might further her aims. I'd imagine she'd be the leader of some sort of merchant's guild, and with alchemy dying out would be seeking to preserve and monopolize the remaining knowledge of the art.

Double post. Site acting up on me. See above for what I wrote :)

_{it begins}

I'm definitely interested! The return of magic is a plot element I'd particularly like to engage with.

I envision a desert mystic type. He was born to a group of people displaced in the Years of Dusk and pushed to the margins. Nomads in some broken part of the world, scavenging to survive. As the flow of magic back into the world turned from a trickle into a torrent, he exhibited prodigious sorcerous talents. Uncontrollable talents. Talents that manifested in disturbing and dangerous ways. He ran out into the desert late one night, and has spent much of the last two years in a fevered, dream-like state, barely conscious, living like an animal in the vast empty dunes under the desert sky, leaving a trail of strangeness in his wake: sand melted into hills of hieroglyphic-etched glass, boulders carved into perfect spheres, ravines shaped so that the wind blowing through whistles in ringing chords.

It was a hell of a bad trip.

But! I don't really want to play a loner. It would be nice to tie his coming to civilization/lucidity to another character -- whether rescued by them, captured by them, nursed back to health, adopted as a student, etc. His goals largely center around learning more about magic, controlling himself, but also feeding his almost compulsive need to act as a conduit for the raw force of magic flowing back into the world. And fending off the madness (risk of possession?) that acting in that way puts him at risk of.

Anyways, that's a first stab at something. Let me know if you have any comments or suggestions, Mr. GM. I'm not super wedded to this, so if it doesn't seem quite right thematically I can try a different concept out on you.

That works pretty much perfectly. Obviously we can work out the specifics once more setting information is available in the OOC, but I can help with details on a case-by-case basis.

I'm super interested in this.

My idea for a character is a hunter who bravely travels outside the protections that the small budding nations offer, and single handedly hunts the barbarians, sometimes slaying them an entire group at a time. He's one of, if not the, best sniper in the land. He absolutely refuses to take on apprentices, despite the fact that many people as have asked, mainly due to the fact that a lot of his skill is aided by magic. It is my idea that he was somehow corrupted by magic, giving him enhanced eyesight and that thing they have in stealth games where you can lock on to targets and they'll have a glowing outline that you can see through walls and such, only he can't turn his on or off, the people around him just have a glowing, golden, outline. These magical abilities also warped his eyes, changing them from his original blue, to glowing gold. A lot of the times, he'll walk around with his eyes closed, relying on his other sense to guide him, especially when he's in civilization, because all the glowing people gives him headaches. There's a lot more to him than that of course, but that's the idea I have so far.

@Arborescence I'd be willing to tie my character to yours if you'd like. It might work out pretty well considering they're both a bit messed up by magic. My character more physically, yours more mentally. They could develop a sort of kinship through that.

A hunter archetype could certainly work. We had a similar character in the first incarnation of the game, though her specialty was hunting mutants. Just for the time being, I wouldn't concern myself with loading your characters with overtly magical effects. Your character can be the greatest hunter just because he's that skilled, not because he uses magic. Kind of understand what I'm getting at?

I am interested, I'm currently toying the idea with a traveling magical scholar/swordsman. The basic idea is a man who spends much of his time traveling in order to both learn and teach. He'd be relatively well known throughout the realms for not only his wisdom, but skill with a blade. As a teacher, he'd likely have a pupil or two following him around to aid him in mundane tasks, and while many have approached him in order to learn swordsmanship, he almost always refuses. Capable of wielding potent light magic in one hand, and a magical blade in the other, he'd be a strong though humble and calm in demeanor. I'm currently debating the type of magic he'll wield, either offenive magic or healing magic- making him either a destructive force, or a defensive guardian.

I think a traveling swordsman would be sufficient. Not every character needs to be magical; indeed, magic is a rare and dangerous thing.

Having given it thought, I'll happily play a ruler or leader of some kind, since it seems like that's what we're missing.

Sure thing, feel free to bounce whatever ideas you need to off of me.

I'd be down for this.

If possible, I'd like to play a diplomat or negotiator. Not much of a fighter, but someone who wields influence and wealth, forming pacts and agreements to shape things in her favor while offering indirect aid to sides and individuals who might further her aims. I'd imagine she'd be the leader of some sort of merchant's guild, and with alchemy dying out would be seeking to preserve and monopolize the remaining knowledge of the art.

Whoops, didn't see you there. The site is hot garbage today.

Sure, that sounds fine.

@Dead Cruiser I understand what you're getting at, but the magic is kind of part of the character I'm making. And what connects my character to @Arborescence's. Perhaps if I toned it down/changed it I could keep it?

I envision a desert mystic type. He was born to a group of people displaced in the Years of Dusk and pushed to the margins. Nomads in some broken part of the world, scavenging to survive. As the flow of magic back into the world turned from a trickle into a torrent, he exhibited prodigious sorcerous talents. Uncontrollable talents. Talents that manifested in disturbing and dangerous ways. He ran out into the desert late one night, and has spent much of the last two years in a fevered, dream-like state, barely conscious, living like an animal in the vast empty dunes under the desert sky, leaving a trail of strangeness in his wake: sand melted into hills of hieroglyphic-etched glass, boulders carved into perfect spheres, ravines shaped so that the wind blowing through whistles in ringing chords.

It was a hell of a bad trip.

But! I don't really want to play a loner. It would be nice to tie his coming to civilization/lucidity to another character -- whether rescued by them, captured by them, nursed back to health, adopted as a student, etc. His goals largely center around learning more about magic, controlling himself, but also feeding his almost compulsive need to act as a conduit for the raw force of magic flowing back into the world. And fending off the madness (risk of possession?) that acting in that way puts him at risk of

I have a character I am considering using for this Role Play. He was originally intended as an Asian Adventures character in a Rokugan themed Role Play. For our purposes in THE AGE OF DAWN, he is racially from the Jade Kingdom, but has lived in the Sand Kingdom for many years. The character was originally created as someone who uses the water elements as a Damage Dealing Healer. He also has excellent unarmed combat skills. He prefers a peaceful exchange in deference to a hostile one. I quoted Arborescence only in that he could have found his Mystic and rescued him from a Sand Tribe or whoever took him captive. As a water based Shugenja. My character also dabbles in some mental abilities or as Arborescence states, a "Mystic". Due to his affinity towards water based magic, he is eager to leave the desert.

Traditionally, I am drawn to brawny barbarian warrior types; maybe with a Viking flair from Hyperborea, but I've always wanted to use this Asian character. I created an extensive spell book with detailed explanations of how to use each spell.

The character I have, could rescue Arborescence's character, nurse him back to health and then take him on as a student. I rarely play youngsters. Since I am already old, I tend to lean towards the upper end of the age spectrum.

EDIT: I've also considered writing for a Mutant, if that is a playable option.

@Dead Cruiser I understand what you're getting at, but the magic is kind of part of the character I'm making. And what connects my character to @Arborescence's. Perhaps if I toned it down/changed it I could keep it?

Hmm, my main issue with what you described is that it sounds very video game-y. Magic in this setting is more abstract and arcane; it's the power of the Gods in a completely literal sense. Perhaps if your character were, I don't know, some manner of druid or something similarly naturalistic it would be more fitting.

Also, I wouldn't worry about correlating characters at this stage of the game. Sure, they could have some knowledge or previous dealings with each other, but I would build each character to be capable of standing independent of any other character. It's important that each of their legacies are their own.

<Snipped quote by Arborescence>
I have a character I am considering using for this Role Play. He was originally intended as an Asian Adventures character in a Rokugan themed Role Play. For our purposes in THE AGE OF DAWN, he is racially from the Jade Kingdom, but has lived in the Sand Kingdom for many years. The character was originally created as someone who uses the water elements as a Damage Dealing Healer. He also has excellent unarmed combat skills. He prefers a peaceful exchange in deference to a hostile one. I quoted Arborescence only in that he could have found his Mystic and rescued him from a Sand Tribe or whoever took him captive. As a water based Shugenja. My character also dabbles in some mental abilities or as Arborescence states, a "Mystic". Due to his affinity towards water based magic, he is eager to leave the desert.

Traditionally, I am drawn to brawny barbarian warrior types; maybe with a Viking flair from Hyperborea, but I've always wanted to use this Asian character. I created an extensive spell book with detailed explanations of how to use each spell.

The character I have, could rescue Arborescence's character, nurse him back to health and then take him on as a student. I rarely play youngsters. Since I am already old, I tend to lean towards the upper end of the age spectrum.

EDIT: I've also considered writing for a Mutant, if that is a playable option.

I would not rely so heavily on pre-established concepts, particularly those from other games. I would be wary as well of the language and cultural barriers that may result from having such an exotic character. I won't outright veto a character from the Jade Kingdoms (a concept most new players present most likely do not yet know of), but I'm hesitant. There is a distinct focus on the Iron Kingdoms in this story, mostly because someone from outside of them would not have been particularly affected by the Years of Dusk, and for other, plot-related reasons.

Also consider my above notes in regards to magic and character interaction.

Seeing that we're getting quite a few magic and scholarly folks (quite the opposite of the original group, which were mostly military commanders of various types), I'd actually be more interested in a Hyperborean. Perhaps an ethnic Northman born in the Iron Kingdoms following the invasion of the Years of Dusk, but that can be discussed later.

Mutants are not playable characters, as it happens. This is for plot reasons, and also because your average mutant is something like this.

Anyway, if I can confirm the interest of one or two more folks, I can go ahead and throw up the ol' OOC.

@Dead Cruiser No problem, I'll scrap the magic idea then. But stick with the hunter concept. Thank you for giving me a concrete reason as to why you didn't think my character idea would fit with the setting. More often than not you just get denied without knowing why.

@Dead Cruiser No problem, I'll scrap the magic idea then. But stick with the hunter concept. Thank you for giving me a concrete reason as to why you didn't think my character idea would fit with the setting. More often than not you just get denied without knowing why.

Hunter sounds A-OK by me.

I'm glad you understand where I'm coming from. I try to maintain a certain degree of transparency in games I run.