House Baratheon of King’s Landing sits on the Iron Throne under King Galladon Baratheon, first of his name. It has ruled since King Robert Baratheon successfully won the civil war to oust House Targaryen (and the incest between Cersei and Jaime Lannister was never discovered by Jon Arryn - preventing the War of the Five Kings). A consequence of this undiscovered incest, however, is the poor fertility of the line. The young Galladon Baratheon currently finds himself with no direct heir in his bloodline.
Across the ocean in Essos, Daenerys Targaryen would never launch her invasion of Westeros. Instead, she formed the Empire of New Valyria - declaring that she would first free Essos from the chains of slavery and cruelty before setting her sights on Westeros. What started as a city-state operating out of Meereen is now a grand empire encompassing the lands of Meereen, Yunkai, Astapor, New Ghis and Mantarys. It is currently ruled by the son of Daenerys Targaryen, Emperor Rhaegar Targaryen. Spies report that it is gearing for war, with its sights set on the Free City of Tyrosh. In response to this, the Free Cities of Essos (Lys, Tyrosh, Myr, Pentos, Braavos and Lorath) have formed a ‘Grand Coalition’ to defend their lands and hopefully dismantle this Empire of New Valyria. Westeros, under King Galladon Baratheon, has pledged itself to this Grand Coalition and troops recently made landfall in Essos, led by King Galladon himself.
The Invasion of the White Walkers has yet to happen - thus far a false prophecy. However, rumblings from the Night’s Watch continue of increasingly strange occurrences and disappearances happening beyond the wall. The typically paranoid Night’s Watch, no doubt…
Hiya folks, cheers for checking out this interest check for Valar Morghulis, an advanced game of thrones roleplay.
I'm doing something a bit different with this roleplay, setting it several decades in the future to allow for the greatest level of creative freedom. More than this, the roleplay will be split into three successive 'acts', all of which will allow for different styles of storytelling.
In the first act - we have a focus on war and action. Stories of heroism, bravery and tragedy on the battlefield will all be prevalent here as our characters battle through Essos. I'm going to create a few prevalent characters from the Empire of New Valyria who will serve as 'antagonists' or rivals for our own characters during this conflict - and who knows, they may turn up in later acts.
Act Two will accommodate the scheming, backstabbing, poorly-planned weddings and dishonorable noblemen fighting for power as the focus returns to Westeros from the military campaigns in Essos. The third act, without spoiling too much, will focus on an invasion of Westeros itself - and the outcome of this invasion will be decided by the stories we create during the first two acts.
We will create the houses of Westeros and characters within, with each writer having creative control over their own house such as House Lannister or Tyrell. Houses cannot be reserved as such, but if you have interest in writing for a specific house, then I encourage you to make it known. It is also possible to play a single character - such as a member of the Small Council or Kingsguard.
If you have any questions, please fire them my way in this thread. I'll look into creating a discord if there is enough interest for quicker communication.
I would be reluctant to have a writer for any King Beyond the Wall at the moment, purely because there won’t actually be much for you to do. The first act of the roleplay will be focused on Essos and the characters who have travelled there from Westeros - be they of noble birth or otherwise.
After the conclusion of the war in Essos, our characters return to Westeros and act two begins - which concentrates on political maneuvering and scheming as the nobility compete for authority in a power vacuum.
Only in Act Three would a King Beyond the Wall potentially be a viable character, and that is quite late in the roleplay.
Tl;dr - I’d prefer if you wrote for a character, or house, south of the wall for now.
For everybody else - I've created the discord chat after a slight delay. The good news is that the OOC has almost been completed, and I've not five straight days off of work to finish it up. In the meantime, please do join the discord and get to know the others who're interested! You're also welcome to start working on house concepts and making interest in a particular house known through the discord.
I'm gonna go for House Martell. Can't join Discord right now but will when I get home. Already have some thoughts in mind for the house concept and plans.
Lord Halys Stark is the current ruler of The North.
He has ruled as such since his father, Lord Paramount Robb Stark, passed away in his sleep eighteen years ago. He has been described by his closest friends as a man of a difficult and uncompromising temperament, Halys Stark is often jokingly referred to as “the mad dog of the north” though his loyalty to the crown has never been put into question. In his youth, the nearly seventy-year-old lord was known to be as quick to a fight as much as he was quick to end it. Though for the northmen that followed him into conflict after conflict it never seemed to blemish his reputation even the slightest; by all appearances, Halys Stark is a beloved lord by most of all of his retainers and vassals. However, as steadfast as he may have been in his youth, the signs of his age and deteriorating health is beginning to show. Halys walks with a limp and is often accompanied by an ironwood cane, his memory is cloudy, and his patience has withered to the point of nonexistence. He still commands a great presence, but his temper has grown greater and his lack of decision has transformed into a slothful existence as he leads his son, Torrhen, to the bulk of the work around the court of Winterfell.
Halys' seems to be a shadow of what he used to be, though some can attest this to the loss of his wife and childhood friend, Josera Tallhart, some years ago. Some say he doesn't have much life left in him, though only time will tell.
Glad to see so many of you joining the Discord! I'll aim to get up an OOC and Character Sheet outline in the next few days. For anybody thinking of joining, the following houses have interested writers: House Baratheon of King's Landing House Baratheon of Dragonstone House Martell House Lannister House Stark House Velaryon House Celtigar
There's still quite a few interesting choices left, so feel free to pop into the Discord for a chat and to discuss ideas.
Background: One of the seven great houses of Westoros, House Martell preside over the southern peninsula of Dorne. They are a close knit house with a proud history. They pride themselves on having never been conquered by any military force, only bending the knee to the Targaryen kings under specific demands. One such is that Martell royalty are referred to as 'princes' and 'princesses'. Royals of either gender may inherit, as may bastards. In recent times the Martells have drawn back from greater political affairs, since the events of Robert's Rebellion. Choosing instead to focus on the peace of Dorne. But with recent troubling events they find themselves forced to join the rest of Westoros.
Realm: Dorne is a harsh, hot region with brutal geographic features. A mountain range divides it from the Stormlands and the Reach, and an unforgiving desert spans the area south of the mountains. Its rough geographical features have provided much in the way of natural defenses. Thought this comes at the expense of the area being somewhat geographically isolated from the rest of Westoros. To the north Dorne is bordered by the Sea of Dorne, the Stepstones islands are to the east, and the Summer Sea borders the south. It is the least populated of the seven kingdoms, but its people are hot blooded and strong willed. Dornishmen tend to be olive skinned with dark hair and dark eyes. Bastardy is treated more kindly in Dorne, bastards of noble houses are able to inherit land and titles.
Leadership: The recently ascended ruler of Dorne, and head of House Martell is Prince Alran Martell. He is the only son of the recently deceased Darnis Martell, a highly regarded man in Dorne. Prince Darnis died three months ago, leaving his kingdom in younger hands. While he has been groomed by his father since he was a young man Darnis is still inexperienced in greater politics. Despite this the young Prince knows he has a duty to his House, and his kingdom to do whats best for everyone in it. His father didn't have to face the issues he has been essentially thrown into, and with the support of his family Darnis will face it.
Military Might: Estimated to be able to raise 50,000 soldiers, Dorne's military might has been put on par with the North. Though they do not possess a naval force. Their warriors are well known as spearmen with complex tactics. Dornish warriors also use guerrilla warfare tactics, sudden ambushes and rapid strikes, tactics which helped them to repel the Targaryens during Aegon's Conquest. The climate and geography of Dorne also aides the military, it is difficult to invade the landscape due to its seemingly endless deserts and mountain ranges. The Dornish also have a reputation for using lethal poisons, and their assassins often employ these toxins in their affairs.
Economy: Dorne exports many unique products, products which are uncommon in the rest of the Seven Kingdoms. They provide various delicious fruits, grown in the gorgeous gardens on the peninsula, as well as spices. Dornish wine is highly regarded, though it is not cheap its taste is rich. Horses breed in Dorne are known as sand steeds, they are beautiful sleek creatures with a swiftness to them. They are smaller than normal warhorses and cannot bear to wear armor, but their incredible endurance and speed makes up for this. The marketplace in Sunspear is constantly filled with activity, Dornish ports welcome merchants from across the Narrow Sea which allows their exports to be sold around the world.
House Allyrion of Godsgrace House Blackmont of Blackmont House Dalt of Lemonwood House Dayne of Starfall House Dayne of High Hermitage House Fowler of Skyreach House Gargalen of Salt Shore House Jordayne of the Tor House Manwoody of Kingsgrave House Qorgyle of Sandstone House Santagar of Spottswood House Toland of Ghost Hill House Uller of the Hellholt House Vaith of the Red Dunes House Wyl of Wyl House Yronwood of Yronwood
House Relations:
House Velaryon - The Martells and Velaryons enjoy positive relations due to a previous marriage. Alran and Dasina's mother was Alyssa Velaryon, the younger sister of the current lord of House Velaryon, Lord Aethan. Alran has also had a close friendship with the current Velaryon heir since childhood, the boy having fostered at Sunspear for a time.
Alran Martell
Titles: Prince of Dorne, Lord of the Sandship and Lord of Sunspear
Age: 24
Appearance: Inheriting the best features of both his parents, Alran is a tall, lean and handsome young prince. His black hair is trimmed medium length, his facial features masculine and defined without bruises or scars. Due to his Velaryon heritage he possesses purple eyes, defining him as having some blood of old Valyria in his veins. Typically clad in fine clothes befitting the Prince of Dorne, Alran emphasizes how Dornish royalty looks. He is not a stupid man though, knowing his position automatically puts him at some danger from bold individuals. He has taken to tucking a dagger on his belt, though he has yet to use it. It's better to be safe than a corpse.
Personality:
Biography:
Dasina Martell
Titles: Princess of Dorne
Age: 22
Appearance: Often claimed to be the most beautiful woman in Dorne, Dasina has an olive colored complexion like the rest of her family, though it is offset with violet eyes. A trait which she shares with her brother. She stands of average height, her body feminine with a modest bust and flawless skin. She often wears elegant robes of bright colors, a favorite shade being orange.
Personality:
Biography:
Dovan Sand
Titles: Ser
Age: 21
Appearance: Bearing the typical features of Dornish royalty Dovan shares the olive skin and dark hair of his family members. He stands 196 cms in height, taller than Prince Alran and both of the princesses. His face is masculine and attractive, with a strong jawline, deep brown eyes and high cheekbones. Still a recent knight, it is rare to find Dovan not wearing some form of armor. His weapon of choice is a fine steel longsword, though he also uses a Dornish spear with a Valyrian steel spearhead, a gift from House Velaryon during a marriage between their houses. Along with his weapons he also carries sturdy round shield which has the sigil of House Martell painted powerfully on the center.
Personality: Dovan tries his best to exemplify the knight's code, trying to bring honor to the Martell name. He is a bastard, though in Dorne is treated no differently than trueborn royalty. He is sensitive to remarks about his bastardry and it's easy to anger him with such remarks. He's overly cocky in his own abilities, while he is an excellent swordsman there are others better than he is, but he does simply not believe it. He's hot headed with a fierce temper, utterly unable to accept defeat. He's not exactly a religious man, though he does believe in some sort of higher power. He's a homosexual, though no one knows this secret except for his half-sister, Olira. The two share an extremely close bond.
Biography:
Olira Martell
Titles: Princess of Dorne
Age: 19
Appearance:
Personality: A quiet, kind hearted girl, Olira is as innocent as they come. She's fiercely protective of her half-brother, and he of her.
