Amberclad Index
New York City, 2040
"No one ever thought it would get this bad."
The Day America Died
"I can't remember when the sky was blue like it use to be."
No one really knows how the end of the world came, one day there wasn't fog and the next there was. Well, those that survived the initial week have some idea but they are just rumors. First, the fog comes, some say it's different every time but no one is for sure. You travel too deep in the fog and the creatures in it will eat you, mutated bears, dogs, they were dogs - right? Communication outside of America has been spotty since the fog rolled in twenty years ago. The military? The Navy took off, to fight what was out in the seas on the east coast - or they just took off. The Army scattered, at first order was to be maintained by order of the President, when help didn't arrive many units deserted while some stayed and founded new cities on the ruins of old. Communication across the country is down, no one knows what's going on on the West Coast but some say they are thriving and the United States Government was relocated to Seattle, Washington.
Of course, these are just rumors, like rumors of men heavily armed in exo-suits exploring the country side of New Jersey. The remnants of the Pennsylvania National Guard help run the democratically elected government of New Philly - the capital of the New United States. The city remains fortified and armed, the peace remained uneasy for some odd fifteen years as the creatures and the fog seemed to of died down and backed off. This was until war ships appeared on the east coast, it's hard to make out what flag they fly or the type of ships that form the blockade but one thing is for certain they are hostile. When a scouting party attempted to approach one of the ships, the earth shaked as a cannon on board the dreadnought blew the ship to pieces of blood stained wood and gore.
That's when the call was made by the Congress of New Philly, to make contact with the rest of America. If the president was alive, if there were others to ally with they would be needed. United together against whatever this threat was, the ships weren't open for diplomacy as evident by their extreme use of force against the sailors. The last time scouts were sent west, they never came back but risks had to be taken to the last full measure. If help didn't come soon, the east coast could fall and possibly the rest of America. That's why a twenty-four volunteer task force was designated in reconnecting the rest of America. Once the country is reunited and the situation is evaluated, action would be taken and this could end. The fog, the monsters could wait for another time...
You're assigned to link up with the supposed "Other U.S.", Seattle - where the old world president - the rightful president resides. You are placed in a group with four other, strangers perhaps or familiar faces. This is only the start of something terrible.
The Gist
"It's us against the world."
Amberclad Index is a post-epic adventure where a group is formed from all walks of life and is sent off by order of the city to find survivors in Seattle and hopefully the president. Amberclad has elements of the sci fi and supernatural genre, however, it remains mainly future post-apocalyptic in all sense. Food is scarce, weapons and armor are choppy and trust is a rare currency. The Player's humanity will be questioned, what it means to be human, character development and growth will be encouraged as the over arching story thickens. The Mysteries that await the player will hopefully captivate their attention to the lore, characters, and universe.
The Mechanics
Mature Themes - are expressed in this roleplay, violence, sex, and all that fun stuff. Adult themes. We won't be typing paragraphs on how Zach's head looks after ten 10mm rounds blow through it nor will we be hosting any leading. Romance is PG13+, anything further is a fade to black on the thread.
Choices - matter. In the end, the world reacts to what you do. Be it spit back at you or praise you, the people you help, kill, injure. That lady you saved might put a good word in with her group, or that Bandit you torture might make your group more feared than liked. The story has multiple endings, I want to make sure player characters have an impact on which ending happens. You don't necessarily have to go to Seattle either...
Freedom - is something I always want in my roleplays. The ability to do side quests, develop your character or to have fun. By freedom we don't mean turning the gun on other player characters, of course killing NPCs is fine but killing the main one will have implications on you and the story of course. Our policy is usually IC is IC, this applies to pretty much everything besides player killing. Be wary.
Death - is ever present in the roleplay, of course, if players start dying it's going to be hard to find a logical way to replace a scout group - right? You'll only die if you do something really stupid, drop or get kicked. Use common sense in all situations or you might die, this RP is more lenient to death than Neon Lights.
Realism - is a mechanic I hope to strive towards. Ammo count, realistic injuries and the sort. Disease, however, there will be times where this isn't enforced as heavy as I want it to. The super natural monsters, some medical items as we're in a somewhat future setting. You won't be walking off from being shot though.
Cooperation - plays a huge part in the story, working as a team will bring the story together. Actively becoming the epic hero, or the edgy silent guy who doesn't interact with anyone won't fly. Especially the person who is in the leader position, this will be probably the heaviest enforced guideline.
The Fog - conveys the ever present danger to the group and America, where it came from or how it came to be is unsure. The monsters it brings with threatening the lives of everyone. The towns, cities ravaged by the fog and anarchy have reduced some to wrecks while others into havens - some bandits. You'll never feel safe, especially at night.
Storytelling - remains a great passion of mine, in this role play I hope to tell an interesting story. Actions will affect it, I want players to reflect on their choices. There will be moral choices, will you retain your humanity or succumb to the displeasure of the sinful?
Now the really important stuff.
You can post your CS to me in PM or wait until OOC later this week.
This isn't first come first served, quality applications will be favored over poor ones.
I plan to run this with 4 people only. Applications will be reviewed Thursday (August 17th) night, if we don't have enough we'll run another CS drive when I get back from Paris on August 27th.
I will be gone Aug 18-26 so good chance we won't start, or I'll leave an IC post the day I leave and will respond late.
OOC, rules and other juicy lore will be up before I go.