Here's a rough draft. I'll flesh it out some more after talking with Bee and the Co-Gms. Just wanted to get my foot in the door.



Name: Sastro Sewojo, AKA "Sam"

Age: 31

Nationality: Indonesian

Noble Arm Name & Appearance: A single action revolver of late nineteenth century manufacture, in immaculately pristine condition. (Exact model and caliber TBD)

Noble Arm Rank:
Power: C
Speed: C? (The effect on Sam is continuous, his buffing (or debuffing) others takes effect pretty fast, the gun shoots a little slow on account of being single-action, but is otherwise a normal gun)
Range: E
Persistence: B
Precision: B
Potential: A

Noble Arm Type, Element, and Range: The item serves a support and a ranged function. The support function is achieved with skin-to-skin contact between the user and the person being affected. As a ranged weapon, the pistol has an effective range of a normal pistol of that manufacture (exact stats to be researched).

Noble Arm Abilities:
Endocrine Optimisation: When the weapon first appeared in his possession, Sam underwent a very uncomfortable growth spurt and increased muscle mass while losing body fat. Essentially, the Arm had forced the dweeby and physically unfit late-twenty-something to undergo a second puberty and develop the physique and stature commensurate with using the weapon. After this initial hurdle, the weapon has continued to regulate his brain and body chemistry, enforcing a more heightened wakefulness and a more deepened sleep, suppressing his appetite between regular meals, and keeping him pretty close to emotional equilibrium.

Endocrine Manipulation: When making skin-to-skin contact with another person, the Arm allows Sam to effect a change in their body chemistry to some particular end: releasing endorphins to dull pain; eliminating lactic acid to alleviate muscle fatigue; spiking testosterone to temporarily boost strength and aggressiveness; flooding a person with sleep or stress hormones to throw them off their game (a powerful and discreet tool, since discussions often begin with a handshake, giving him his chance.)

Factory Reset: The pistol always remains clean and fully loaded after a round is discharged. Powder burns and staining can occur on the surfaces shot, but the gun itself remains as it was. It never needs to be reloaded or maintained.

Misc Abilities: What are your other talents?
- Marksmanship; knife-throwing
- Multilingual
- Negotiation skills

Personality: WIP
Harsh with himself, patient with others. Well-spoken and "likable" (I'll work on better defining this at some point). Needs to get over himself, and let go of his guilt for being a rude NEET in the past.

*Likes: Kreteks, Cowboy/Buddy Cop movies,

*Dislikes:Sweets,

Fears: WIP

Bio:

*Current Goal: To make his parents pleased. This is sort of a moot point; his mother loved him unconditionally before he got the noble arm, and his father is just pleased to see him finally having grown up and gotten a life. Not to mention, they can't exactly know all the details about his classified work with Task Force Obsidian. But, driven but a deep-seated guilt over his being a lazy burden on them in his twenties pushes him to continually try to bite off more than he can chew.

Military or Civilian Rank:
[IDK about this; what do they do for non-military people in Task Force Obsidian?]

@PrinceAlbert

Nice, can't say anything on NA Abilities, they look pretty much perfect.

Aight I will help you with the stats since I don't think you're in the Discord (?), and the explanation of power is there.

• Power D, this is the level that's comparable to carrying a loaded gun, and the abilities aren't that destructive.
• Speed C is fine, this is about the activation speed of the NA Abilities, excluding the passive effect on Sam himself, they all take decently fast but are not immediate (shooting is slightly slower cuz single-action and the ability on an ally will require him to reach out and touch them, so not immediate but not that slow)
• Range... ok so F is touch range for Endocrine Manipulation, but also mind you D is around pistol range, less than 50m.
• Persistence B, is cool.
• Precision B, means you can selectively exempt whoever you want from the effects, it won't mean much with touch range for activation. But depending how precisely he can modify someone's bodily functions and chemistry, you may even argue for Precision A.
• Potential C, B at most, but if you do B prepare a new ability for pretty soon in the story. A is restricted since that's the "blank state" for a brand NA.

OK, based on feedback his and in the discord, my more full draft for the character:

Appearance: Tall (for the region); slender; toned arms and chest; thick facial hair; ear-length dark hair. Portrait TBD. 5'10", 187 lbs.

Name: Sastro Sewojo, AKA "Sam"

Age: 31

Nationality: Indonesian

Noble Arm Name & Appearance: The Batavian Special: A single action revolver of late nineteenth century manufacture, in immaculately pristine condition. (Exact model and caliber TBD)

Noble Arm Rank:
Power: D
Speed: C
Range: F
Persistence: B
Precision: B
Potential: A

Noble Arm Type, Element, and Range: The item serves a support and a ranged function. The support function is achieved with skin-to-skin contact between the user and the person being affected. As a ranged weapon, the pistol has an effective range of a normal pistol of that manufacture (exact stats to be researched).

Noble Arm Abilities:

Endocrine Optimisation: When the weapon first appeared in his possession, Sam underwent a very uncomfortable growth spurt and increased muscle mass while losing body fat. Essentially, the Arm had forced the dweeby and physically unfit late-twenty-something to undergo a second puberty and develop the physique and stature commensurate with using the weapon. After this initial hurdle, the weapon has continued to regulate his brain and body chemistry, enforcing a more heightened wakefulness and a more deepened sleep, suppressing his appetite between regular meals, and keeping him pretty close to emotional equilibrium.

Endocrine Manipulation: When making skin-to-skin contact with another person, the Arm allows Sam to effect a change in their body chemistry to some particular end: releasing endorphins to dull pain; eliminating lactic acid to alleviate muscle fatigue; spiking testosterone to temporarily boost strength and aggressiveness; flooding a person with sleep or stress hormones to throw them off their game (a powerful and discreet tool, since discussions often begin with a handshake, giving him his chance.)

Factory Reset: The pistol always remains clean and fully loaded after a round is discharged. Powder burns and staining can occur on the surfaces shot, but the gun itself remains as it was. It never needs to be reloaded or maintained.

Misc Abilities: What are your other talents?
- Marksmanship; knife-throwing
- Multilingual
- Negotiation skills
- Radio operation

Personality: WIP
Harsh with himself, patient with others. Well-spoken and "likable"; likes to quote American movies and break tension with humor when he can do tastefully. Not very political, he'll tend to try to diplomatically redirect the conversation when something contentious comes up. He likes to adopt some western fashions without compromising an Indonesian identity; in casual occasions he might be wearing American-stye heeled cowboy boots and a vest while at the same time wearing a Peci and smoking that distinctively Indonesian artifact: the Kretek. While he does support the ASEAN move to check Chinese aggression, is not a hawk, and would like to see the fighting stop as quickly as possible. Needs to get over himself, and let go of his suppressed shame for wasting his youth, and feeling that he doesn't deserve the second chance he got from the Noble Arm that he didn't earn.

Likes: Kreteks, Cowboy/Buddy Cop movies, Lizards,

Dislikes:Sweets, media that reminds him of his "Otaku" phase, Snakes

Fears: Reverting back into a "loser"; Being exposed as a fraud (no specific reason, just a looming sense of inadequacy); harm coming to his parents or siblings.

Bio:

- Sastro Sewojo was born in 1991, the middle child of seven, to a comfortable middle class family in Aceh. His parents were pretty normal people; dad was a junior manager for a natural gas extraction company. However was a little too coddled, and never made very much of himself throughout his young adult life. Staying at home, he never attended college and only worked intermittently, although opportunities for study and a do-nothing job were both made available by his parents. When not collecting toys or comic books, he did tinker with radios and practice English and Japanese. He received his Noble Arm via inheritance three years ago, when an inexperienced Arms Master who possessed it previously took a bullet between the eyes from separatists. Sam was out walking in the woods when this happened out of his line of sight, and the weapon passed to him in a brilliant flash.

- Described above in Abilities, Sam underwent a bodily and psychological metamorphosis, and became someone actually useful for fighting. He threw away a lot of his old manchild junk, and pivoted hard towards "manly" hobbies as best as he knew how. As a volunteer, he has assisted non-powered army patrols in-country with his buffing ability and radio knowledge. His first mission outside of Indonesia, and the one before joining task force Obsidian, was a bounty-hunting job in the Philippines, catching an Arms Master who fled on bail.

Current Goal: To make his parents pleased. This is sort of a moot point; his mother loved him unconditionally before he got the noble arm, and his father is just pleased to see him finally having grown up and gotten a life. Not to mention, they can't exactly know all the details about his classified work with Task Force Obsidian. But, driven but a deep-seated guilt over his being a lazy burden on them in his twenties pushes him to continually try to bite off more than he can chew.

Military or Civilian Rank:
Volunteer

@PrinceAlbert, Approval One granted.

Provisional Approval to post also granted, but can be overridden by the other GMs.

We might have another player soon, but no promises.

We are still looking for more players, but once temperatures cool in America, I will hold a roll call to see if people want to continue this game or try a sequel.

@Urizen, Approval One given.

@Urizen approved

There are 24 more days till the heatwaves end; this means that if we can set the groundwork for a continuation once players can write and post again, we can.

I am currently encouraging people to play Non-Arms Master OCs, as they can be badass too, as supersonic aircraft, tanks, and even a few prototype mechs exist.

Name: Mykhailo Martinez

Age: 19

Nationality: Ukrainian - Filipino

Noble Arm Name & Appearance:

N/A

Noble Arm Rank:

N/A

Noble Arm Type, Element, and Range: N/A

Noble Arm Abilities:

N/A

Misc Abilities: A skilled pilot who has gone through basic training as a soldier, and a cook, and has a degree in History.

Personality: Polite, kind, and generous, even to his bitterest enemies, Mykhailo has been shaken by the events of 2022, but tries to take the high road and not give himself over to hatred. Instead, he resents how his lack of a Noble Arm meant that he could not even be of help to his own country, Ukraine, especially as his piloting skills were not enough to make a difference in the war without experience. However, he knows that strengthening his personality and development would give him a Noble Arm that can solve the problems he has, thus allowing him to gain the power he needs to save both the Philippines and Ukraine and those whom he loves.

*Likes: Contentment (rarely found nowadays), Astronomy, Flying.

*Dislikes: Russia, China, and his negative feelings.

Fears: Falling into the hands of the enemy.

Bio: Mykhailo's Father was one of the Philippines' richest media executives, his mother was a Ukrainian volunteer worker who helped run a homeless shelter. They married; he was happy, not wondering about his mother's roots - He loved the Philippines, and Ukraine to him was a distant name. Then, as he grew up, he realized he liked both boys and girls and it wounded his heart that he was something so shameful, so aberrant, so different, and he would be targeted by hatred if people found out. It became worse when he moved back to Ukraine for a few years to attend a moderately prestigious flight school where he could train as a pilot.

His wingman was also his first love; a Ukrainian boy named Artem who had an interest in astronomy, and even got Mykhailo interested in the subject. The stars, the moon, and the sky, were interesting, and so was Artem; he was such a kind and generous person and Mykhailo wanted to be with him forever.

When he turned 18; he went back to the Philippines to visit his father, just in time for China and Russia to hold 'parallel special military operations' in both Southeast Asia and Ukraine - Artem died in the first volleys of the Russian invasion; to this day, Mykhailo believes that the latter was targeted for being gay.

The young man tried to muster the anger and hate required for revenge, but could not do so; he was too kind for that, even to people who hated him for what he was. Instead, all he could feel was utter sadness... And Artem's smile, that smile when they spent time together under the stars. So he did something immensely difficult, something he found hard to justify even to himself - He let go of his desire to hate and instead chose to try and stop the Russians and Chinese so that more people do not have to be hurt.

He felt a seed of something stir within him; the very beginnings of something that if treasured and nurtured, could grant him what he needed most - The power to save his people.

And so Mykhailo joined the Philippine Air Force, hoping to strengthen himself and potentially gain a Noble Arm. Then he'd make sure that more people like Artem do not have to die.

*Current Goal: Save ASEAN, then Ukraine.

Military or Civilian Rank: Airman

*Optional

@4wheathRmany, wait for another GM to give a second approval.

For now, Len Vuong has his first Approval, but do repost him on the OOC before getting the second review.

Name: Len Vuong

Age: 22

Nationality: American

Noble Arm Name & Appearance: Argentarch, a ceremonial white jade dagger carved into the likeness of a chimera with the body of a feathered tiger with wings

First Chimeramorph Appearance [+]

Noble Arm Rank: B



Noble Arm Type, Element, and Range: Melee, shapeshifting, close- to mid-range

Noble Arm Abilities:
Argentarch enhances speed and strength, allowing for superhuman reflexes and resilience.

Chimeramorphy allows for flight regardless of somatic injuries to wings and the ability to demonstrate “nature red in tooth and claw,” but the chimeramorph cannot vocalize nor does it enhance Len’s human senses.

Pinions (penna-minions) are formed when the tigerdove chimeramorph sheds feathers, acting as simple and weak drones that appear like loosely clumped heaps of white feathers or even torn-up plastic bags. The further Len bids them to go, the less responsive and more unsophisticated they become. At the maximum range of 200m, he can only have the pinions sluggishly travel into closer proximity to him where they can carry out more sophisticated maneuvers like obscuring things in a blizzard of pinions or transporting small objects.

Misc Abilities: Ambidexterity, bilingualism

Personality: Len is about as naïve as one would expect from a young man raised in Oklahoma, and also prefers to view events with a measure of amusement. Simultaneously, Len takes satisfaction in playing the straight man—although this is often undermined by his default expressionlessness that can come off as sarcasm. While he doesn’t take light deviations from loyalty among those he spends his time with badly, Len prides himself in his own loyalty towards others. Stemming from his upbringing, this young man will almost universally be considered excessively stingy. While not a strict adherent, Len believes that he should be deliberate as often as possible, somewhat related to his mannerisms where speed is both measured but appears relaxed.

At times, he can be decisive—or impulsive, depending on your perspective—but in general, Len tends to be cautious, especially when decisions carry responsibility he is uncomfortable with. His reluctance to direct positions of leadership often leads Len to align himself under a superior—providing his creativity or insight when he believes it is pertinent but primarily exhibiting diligence in the execution of instructions. Confiding in Len has never been a problem in the past, either, as he lacks loose lips or an easily cowed nature susceptible to peer pressure.

*Likes:

*Dislikes:

Fears: His goal is to become historically significant—symbolic immortality—but fears that in his quest he may weaken his moral code. A problem with this is his lack of a well-defined moral code, leading him to agonize over the accidental and intentional “toeing of lines” mentally. He has other typical fears—fear of disappointing those who love or trust him and fear of powerlessness in all its forms. Combat always consists of an element of uncertainty, but Len’s civilian background leaves him quite poor at judging risk, tending towards overestimating danger and acting with more unwillingness than what might be rational.

Bio: Len Vuong was born in 2000 and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma to a working-class family who named him after Leonardo DiCaprio. Len is of Chinese and Vietnamese descent, which influenced his decision to serve as a foreign volunteer under ASEAN, alongside his desire to “make something” of himself. While Len personally feels connected to his family, he is somewhat of an outcast because of his choice to leave the country and serve overseas.

Before the manifestation of Argentarch, his Noble Arm, Len had been trained and then served in non-combatant roles within foreign volunteer units for over two years, during which he had refined his Mexican-flavored Spanish from his youth with Filipino elements. As of November 2022, the Arms Master has been transferred out of the support positions.

*Current Goal: Len aims to become a person worth being proud of, defending his people and making a name for himself.

Military or Civilian Rank: Foreign volunteer

@4wheathRmany, As I said, he has first approval!

@4wheathRmany
approval two

The force is strong with you! A powerful sith you will become!

@Letter Bee

Change An Artificial Sky so that it is less impactful, say it only changes grade +/-1 Grade instead of nuking someone to E (that is just unfun imo)

once that is changed you can consider Mykhailo approved.

@Letter Bee

Change An Artificial Sky so that it is less impactful, say it only changes grade +/-1 Grade instead of nuking someone to E (that is just unfun imo)

once that is changed you can consider Mykhailo approved.

Done!