It was delivered in a crisp manilla envelope, sealed by a wax stamp that bore the mark of a phoenix. It belonged to none of the more prominent mage houses, that was for certain- it would have been recognized as quickly as the face of the president or Queen herself, or, in a more mundane comparison, the mascot of a prominent fast food chain. However, wherever it came from, it was addressed to both you and your family alike. It opened easily, revealing a letter that was just as simplistic as the package that had concealed it.
In neat, official print, it read:

”To Whom it May Concern,

After several years of preparation, we are pleased to announce the official opening of the Marchand School of Sorcery. Here, students (aged 14 to 18) will be able to receive a full, in-depth magical education- regardless of background, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or primary. Not only will they learn how to better control and wield their preexisting and steadily growing magical development, but they will also be guided through the delicate process of harnessing their Secondary abilities, become educated in the history of mages, lineages, and magical theory, and learn the basics of self-defense- all in a controlled and nurturing environment. In addition, students will be learning from professors specifically selected by the Council of the Eight Powers, and are some of the best of the best in their respective crafts.

Due to the extended period of time in which pupils are expected to attend Marchand (see the curriculum for details), the building offers various facilities and accommodations to keep the students comfortable. These include- but are not limited to- furnished dormitories, a cafeteria, gymnasium, pool, library, and common room. Students are assigned dorms automatically, and are allowed to use the facilities as they please- within reason, of course.

There will be an open house on the 4th to meet the professors, and to decide if Marchand will be a suitable environment for your child.

Regards,
The Marchand Staff.”

Enclosed with the letter were several other sheets and forms, paperclipped in a neat, carefully folded stack that smelled faintly of perfume.

---

Hello, lovely people of the Interest Checks. I'm Echo, Game Master of the Marchand School of Sorcery. I put this RP up on the Casual board not too long ago, but as it hasn't received much in the ways of joiners over there, I wanted to check on here to see if anyone might decide to hop on if/before I remake it. :)

Marchand is a simplistic roleplay in pretense- a high school, where students of all magical types and backgrounds can gather, make friends, form relationships, and learn how to control and better harness their powers. What (hopefully) sets this roleplay apart, however, is that there is a large focus on the actual learning the students will be doing, as well as the relationships and interactions between the teens. There is also some deeper lore surrounding the war that happened sometime before Marchand came into existence, and an underlying plot that you will have to join in order to properly discover. Marchand itself is set in a basic “humans don’t know about magic” type setting, with mages having organized systems across the globe, a governing body (The Eight Powers), and, in some cases, facades to keep humankind, for the most part, in the dark when it comes to mages and sorcery. While this can seem very Harry Potter esque for those more interested in Fantasy, there are several key differences that should (again, hopefully) set Marchand apart from a Potter fic. This includes focus on proper hand-to-hand combat, a lack of wands, robes, and real “spells”, and some other good stuff.

What you can expect from Marchand:

- Opportunities for in-depth character development and discovery.

- A world specifically built to allow any characters within reason to fit in and have fun.

- An active, dedicated group that will be more than happy to help you out and interact.

- Different IC events.

- A leisurely posting time, made flexible to support the large cast and writer busyness.

With that said, there are some things that I would appreciate from prospective joiners:

- Reliability. Please don’t join and just never post, or claim that you will post in a certain time frequently and never follow through. While we understand that things can get in the way, please tell us if you need more time, and post often if you can. This is especially the case if you would want a teacher character, as well.

- Creativity. Don’t steal anyone else’s concepts, ideas, or the like without asking. However, if you have any plot or character or ideas, feel free to toss them at me so I can look over them. I like to consider myself fairly reasonable and open to suggestions, concepts, potential character sub plots, or preexisting history between characters.

- Maturity. Our characters can be clawing each other’s throats out IC, but outside of the roleplay, everyone is expected to be at the very least cordial to one another, if not amiable. In addition, while the RP is currently pretty light hearted, be warned that there are a few topics that might or will come up through a magical high school that you will be expected to deal with.

If any of this interests you, or if you have any questions or comments, feel free to let me know. :) I'm eager for any potential feedback or advice on the plot, and will get back to you as soon as possible.

Hmm, this certainly sounds like it has some potential for a good time, I'll leave my interest here then, shall I?

Interested.

Is this going to be more realistic, or anime styled?

@Mr Allen J I'd say both, in some ways. Some aspects of the RP will be treated in a somewhat realistic manner, but some other stuff, like the magic, the attitudes of the teacher, and a few other things will probably come across as fairly anime esque. The tone depends largely on the cast that we get, but it's probably just going to wind up as a blend of the two, as I said. :)

@Mr Allen J I'd say both, in some ways. Some aspects of the RP will be treated in a somewhat realistic manner, but some other stuff, like the magic, the attitudes of the teacher, and a few other things will probably come across as fairly anime esque. The tone depends largely on the cast that we get, but it's probably just going to wind up as a blend of the two, as I said. :)

Neat.

What about faceclaims, then?

@Mr Allen J Whatever suits you best. I know how difficult it can be to find new FCs if you stick to one mediium or another (largely from my own firsthand experience, haha), so I won't force anyone to spend time fishing around for a brand new character picture to fit the roleplay.

@Mr Allen J Whatever suits you best. I know how difficult it can be to find new FCs if you stick to one mediium or another (largely from my own firsthand experience, haha), so I won't force anyone to spend time fishing around for a brand new character picture to fit the roleplay.

That sounds like a good idea on paper, but it's probably best if you stick to anime or real images imo. It looks weird when you scroll through the CHAR tab and you have a bunch of wildly different images. That could just be me, but I know it'd be more than a little weird trying to imagine real people alongside animu waifus.

Again, this is just a suggestion, and you're free to ignore me! I'm still going to participate either way.

@Mr Allen J Thank you for the advice! I imagine that it could be kind of odd having a bunch of teens with glowing pink hair alongside regular people myself, haha. I think I'll stick to allowing both art and photos for now, though, and if the contrast is too overly jarring to people, I'll see if I can change the rules for the better. :)

Thank you for your interest, by the way! Would you be wanting a student character, or would you like to try for a teacher?

@EchoicChamber Hmmm... how many characters are we allowed?

I had an idea for a pumpkin themed witch that I wish to find a home for. She'd be a student.

@Mr Allen J You can have as many as you think you can handle, friend. :)
Would you like me to put down the types of magic that characters can have? I was planning on just having it on the official RP if it kicks off, but if you're coming up with ideas for characters now, then I think it might be a good idea to put it down here too.

@EchoicChamber Establishing what kind of magic people can have can really help everyone down the line, so yeah.

@Mr Allen J Alright, there are two types of general magics: Primaries and Secondaries. You're born with your Primary, and you're stuck with whatever magic it is that you're born with. It's impossible to teach yourself out of it and into another one. Secondaries, on the other hand, you can learn, although they're inherently weaker than Primaries. You can have two Secondaries, and only one Primary.

The Primaries are:

Aquamancy: Control of water, ice, and, if you're skilled enough, blood.

Aeromancy: Control of air. Pairs well with Levitation, as it allows you to fly.

Pyromancy: Control of fire.

Terramancy: Control of earth, plants, and wildlife.

Trickery: The power of illusions and sleight of hand.

Defense: The power of nullification and shielding.

Runes: The power of runes/trap setting.

Necromancy: Power over the dead, corpses and ghosts alike.

---

The Secondaries are:

Tracking: Find whatever you want, object and person alike.

Levitation: The ability to levitate objects on a minor scale (no more than what you can logically lift), as well as yourself. Pairs well with Aeromancy.

Illumination: The power to create a flashbang, light up rooms, and blind people temporarily.

Magical Weapon Infusement: The ability to infuse magic into weapons, enchanting them. The ability given to the weapon depends on your Primary (i.e. a sword made by a Pyromancer would burn on touch).

Blood Magic: Summon demons, safeguard against supernatural beings, bind creatures, and create wards.

Familiar Conjuration: The power to draw a familiar out of a supernatural plane, taming it for your own use. You can have several set familiars, but only one out at a time. The largest familiars are usually the size of a large dog.

Toxin Production: Produce various poisons and toxins from your pores.

Shadow Step: Minor teleportation from one shadow to the next.

Healing: The ability to enhance the natural healing of the body to supernaturally fast rates.

@EchoicChamber Ah, I guess this works out great for me. lol

Might have a second character in mind, and maybe a teacher. I have to think.

@Mr Allen J Sounds good! Take as much time as you need. I'm planning to wait until some more people show interest before things are fully set up. c:

Oh, so this is the rp you showed me Allen... I may or may not dip my toe into this one, we will see.

Regardless, if I do, I need to come up with an idea beyond Runes/Shadow Step Comboing, as well as finding a non-anime faceclaim.

Oh, so this is the rp you showed me Allen... I may or may not dip my toe into this one, we will see.

Regardless, if I do, I need to come up with an idea beyond Runes/Shadow Step Comboing, as well as finding a non-anime faceclaim.

@EchoicChamber I'm sorry.

<Snipped quote by Savo>

@EchoicChamber I'm sorry.

I'm even more sorry that they have to deal with you.

@Savo Always good to have more interest, either way. :) Characters can have two secondaries max, by the way, so feel free to choose another in addition to Shadow Step.

Sounds cool, count me in mate

Just a few things to clarify: this is set in the real world with Harry Potter esque magic schools
And
There will be martial arts training...
If so, will there be certain courses about imbuing magic into fighting, (I know that's a bit like imbuing weapons with magic but I'm talking about the human body), would it be like chi fighting that you see commonly in martial arts anime and the like, or will it be connected to runes and enchantments and that sort of stuff
Just interested and trying to pass time while I'm supposed to be doing my history homework, (god damnit why can't I find anything on Anzacs and paschendaele)