The Guttersnipes of Lydin

[Enigmatik]

Welcome to Lydin. The city that launched the Empire of Albion- that stretches so far West that it becomes East, and so far East that it becomes West. From Tianzhu to Alleghany, the fingers of the Empire stretch and curl. At home though, at the beating heart where millions scurry around the city? Poverty, despair, inequality. These things so deeply entrenched that digging them out would take generations on generations. But that’s not this story.

No, because on Templar’s Street, in Lydin’s Slumside, there are a set of buildings. Three streets away, Commericum owned factories chug and churn, but here women and children live, making their living off of the bustle of London. Girls, Forced smiles plastered across faces as they wooed and cooed at the workers that passed through these cobbled roads.

Between the girls were the children. This was no normal orphanage though. No, here there was no strict mistress prepared to keep the children in line. Faunus and Human children alike scurry with dirtied clothes, laughing, playing, and alleviating pockets. This is the small little kingdom of The Mademoiselle- a Galeish woman with a wide smile and clothes unbefitting of her class.

In this little corner of Lydin, perhaps the most momentous occurrence in the Empire is about to take place, all kicked off by one thieving little faunus, and one equally thieving factory worker.

“You git! Fucking give it back!” The man growled and dashed after the boy, who stuck his tongue out and laughed. He tossed the device up, which clacked clattered around in the air. Every time the worker charged forward, the boy would back off, slitted eyes taunting the man more than the thief. “Fine. You know what? Have it. Stupid little thing anyway.” The worker shook his head and walked away, grumbling.

The boy taunted the man as he walked away, and looked down at the device. It was a grooved ball, perhaps the diameter of a Guinea. It clicked and whirred around in his palm, and despite his scrutiny, it seemed perfectly whole. Oh well. Maybe the fence would know someone who could give him a shilling for it.

---

Blah blah blah, Hello everyone! Irredeemable here, and this is a magi-steampunk Victorian England RP, set place in a small area of the London Lydin slums. We’ll be playing the orphans and girls who get caught up in all the action, so I’m looking for maybe 6-7 people to take these roles. Much more details to come if this gets off the ground.

[RomanAria]

Potentially interested! I don't have a ton of time to write but this seems like it could be fun.

[Lady Selune]

Was just thinking about doing something steampunk. Don't suppose someone like this would be too far out?

[Instigator]

@Irredeemable
Provisionally interested and willing to make an extraordinarily dangerous gentleman with a prospensity for to-the-death duelling who does not allow his tender age of eight to stand in the way of racking up a kill-count higher than his heroic idols from the glorious history of his beloved country.

But, not to be rude or anything, would it really be Lydin? Shit sounds frankly terrible. This one missing consonant turns a good sounding name into something akin to a corpse of a butchered puppy that someone also kicked really hard and had to scrub off of his boot. How about Old Smoke, Great Wen, The City, Swinging City, some other catchy euphemism like that if you are utterly opposed to calling it London?

On a side note, what sort of degree of grittiness and darkness should be expected? Did all the magitech n stuff like that make the world a better place where working houses never happened despite a large amount of orphans and useless children still being around? Or are we to be prepared for shit to be dark and realistic?

[Enigmatik]

Potentially interested! I don't have a ton of time to write but this seems like it could be fun.

@RomanAria

Cool cool! This should be high casual, so quality over quantity!

Was just thinking about doing something steampunk. Don't suppose someone like this would be too far out?

@Lady Selune

The knives and pink hair is a no. The cool trenchcoat and the boots are a yes though. Oh, and the patched up trousers.

@Irredeemable
Provisionally interested and willing to make an extraordinarily dangerous gentleman with a prospensity for to-the-death duelling who does not allow his tender age of eight to stand in the way of racking up a kill-count higher than his heroic idols from the glorious history of his beloved country.

But, not to be rude or anything, would it really be Lydin? Shit sounds frankly terrible. This one missing consonant turns a good sounding name into something akin to a corpse of a butchered puppy that someone also kicked really hard and had to scrub off of his boot. How about Old Smoke, Great Wen, The City, Swinging City, some other catchy euphemism like that if you are utterly opposed to calling it London?

On a side note, what sort of degree of grittiness and darkness should be expected? Did all the magitech n stuff like that make the world a better place where working houses never happened despite a large amount of orphans and useless children still being around? Or are we to be prepared for shit to be dark and realistic?

@Instigator

He sounds perfect. As for Lydin... Ouch. That's pretty brutal bruh. It's not set in stone yet, and since I'm renaming literally everything, so London still being London would be a bit strange.

As for grittyness. Pretty gritty. Most of the city has been stitched up by The Commercium, a conglomerate of businesses whose competitors are known to have mysterious boiler explosions and fires. There's an Assassination/Thieves guild that is an open secret (they don't care about street urchins, but if you come in as an adult and attempt to run even the most basic of scam without Society permission, there'll be trouble.

Workhouses are a real threat, chimney sweeps are a thing (even more so since steampunk,) and it's generally pretty shit. The Mademoiselle's orphanage is really less of an orphanage and more of a thieving operation (she actively encourages the kids into crime, and obviously runs the brothel....) So yeah. Gritty. Gritty with steampunk marvels and magic, but still gritty.

[Paradoxial]

Super interested! Have a ton of questions though. What's the maximum age we can make our characters, since the world is steampunk do they have blimps/sky ships powered by steam/ and or magic? Was thinking about making a character a bit older than the rest, who tries and routinely fails to keep his friends out of trouble. Couple of other ideas to, but I've been waiting for this kinda RP for awhile :)

[Enigmatik]

Super interested! Have a ton of questions though. What's the maximum age we can make our characters, since the world is steampunk do they have blimps/sky ships powered by steam/ and or magic? Was thinking about making a character a bit older than the rest, who tries and routinely fails to keep his friends out of trouble. Couple of other ideas to, but I've been waiting for this kinda RP for awhile :)

@Paradoxial

Maximum age for a female is 18, 13 for a male. Zepplins are a thing, as are planes, but the former is far more common than the latter. Held aloft via science.

[Instigator]

@Irredeemable
Why such a great difference between ages tho
Also how steampunk are we speaking
are sabres already entirely outpaced by firearms or...

[Enigmatik]

@Irredeemable
Why such a great difference between ages tho
Also how steampunk are we speaking
are sabres already entirely outpaced by firearms or...

@Instigator

Girls between 13 and 18 aren't kosher either, but I was tired and forgot to elaborate. Up to thirteen for both, then girls can be eighteen, although I want only one or two maximum.

Steampunk setting is... WW1. Guns outpace horses, but the mindset hasn't moved on from cavalry and mechs together.

[RomanAria]

Also, for the record I like the name Lydin. To me at least it sounds a bit fantasyish and medievally but maybe it's a relic from that old time? In any case, I like it.

[Enigmatik]

Ok. Does anyone have questions? Note that the role of magic, what exactly faunus are, and a few other details about the world will be covered, as are major factions and the state of the world.

Other than that, any questions.
(Shoulda said that first.)

[Instigator]

@Irredeemable
How troublesome would it be for me to be the ringleader of an urchin gang and owe a brace of pistols?

[Enigmatik]

@Instigator Pretty troublesome. Not the urchin gang thing so much as the pistols.

[Instigator]

@Irredeemable
Surely you don't meant to say that several large knives, a sabre, two revolvers, bullets and some heroin are hard to come by on the civilian and black market in the heart of a booming empire where crime and inhuman industrialization run rampant? After all we are criminals, we don't follow gun regulations, if any are in place. Plus other urchin gangs are at our soles, and warfare between those gets quite hectic.

[Enigmatik]

@Irredeemable
Surely you don't meant to say that several large knives, a sabre, two revolvers, bullets and some heroin are hard to come by on the civilian and black market in the heart of a booming empire where crime and inhuman industrialization run rampant? After all we are criminals, we don't follow gun regulations, if any are in place. Plus other urchin gangs are at our soles, and warfare between those gets quite hectic.

@Instigator

I generally want to stay away from all out violence. You've got to pick a pocket or two, yes, but street gangs actively fighting in the streets is A, asking for the redcoats to stomp down, and B, not very effective when you have the Strangefellows.

[RomanAria]

Edit: disregard, I started writing and was promptly ninja'd. >.>

[Instigator]

@Irredeemable
Hold on. The Lydin is in WW 1 tech-level, yet redcoats are still a thing? Like a part of everyday uniform? And should i understand that the city is under a martial law, if the common unrest and homicide are policed by military instead of specialized organs?

[Enigmatik]

@Irredeemable
Hold on. The Lydin is in WW 1 tech-level, yet redcoats are still a thing? Like a part of everyday uniform? And should i understand that the city is under a martial law, if the common unrest and homicide are policed by military instead of specialized organs?

@Instigator

The TECH level is WW1. Culturally, it's very much still Victorian era London. Also, no, it's just easier and more thematically appropriate to say 'redcoats,' than it is to say 'anti-gang police.'

[Instigator]

@Irredeemable
So gang warfare is so prolific it required a special law enforcement unit to be established in victorian-esque london?
Also, about that "staying away from violence" thing - you wanna keep this stuff like, PG-13, is that what you mean? Because I've already read up on the best and the dreadful parts of that time and boy i am telling you, without degradation and men stooping to the lowest lows for the sake of survival and proliferation a London gutter ain't going to be a gutter.

[Enigmatik]

@Irredeemable
So gang warfare is so prolific it required a special law enforcement unit to be established in victorian-esque london?
Also, about that "staying away from violence" thing - you wanna keep this stuff like, PG-13, is that what you mean? Because I've already read up on the best and the dreadful parts of that time and boy i am telling you, without degradation and men stooping to the lowest lows for the sake of survival and proliferation a London gutter ain't going to be a gutter.

@Instigator

Not what I intended with 'anti-gang police.' And no, It won't be PG 13, but the whole point of this is that it isn't all about shooting and violence. The stolen artifact is what the plot will revolve around.