Short and simple here.
Respect your fellow players, both IC and OOC.
Understand that the GM's word is final, though I'm willing to compromise where I can.
Communicate and cooperate with everyone in the RP to the best of your ability.
Be creative, and make an effort at crafting a quality story.
Maintain a standard of posting frequency, or let us know if you're having difficulty keeping up or if issues arise.
Feel free to ask questions, share ideas or voice your concerns.
Have fun!
Respect your fellow players, both IC and OOC.
Understand that the GM's word is final, though I'm willing to compromise where I can.
Communicate and cooperate with everyone in the RP to the best of your ability.
Be creative, and make an effort at crafting a quality story.
Maintain a standard of posting frequency, or let us know if you're having difficulty keeping up or if issues arise.
Feel free to ask questions, share ideas or voice your concerns.
Have fun!
The Great Void, also known as the Aether, the Nether, the Beyond and Outer Space, is the infinite abyss that makes up the majority of the cosmos. Far from empty as its name may imply, the Void is home to great phlogiston seas, raging ether storms, an endless number of stars and world orbiting them, and many other, stranger phenomena. Stars, spherical entities of pure heat and energy, are often host to worlds that support life, known in shorthand as "systems." While the vast majority of inhabited worlds have no understanding of the Void or life on other worlds, there are many still who do, and manage to escape their world and join the cosmic community.
Void travel is as varied in function as the myriad worlds that have invented it. A number of hurdles must be overcome to achieve it, including escaping the gravity of one's homeworld, surviving the lack of gravity and breathable atmosphere in the Void, and avoiding the many dangers that lurk in the Void's depths. Voidships, crafts designed specifically for Void travel, often utilize a variety of spell engines and magical generators to overcome these issues, as well as to defend the ships and provide their crews with sustenance. Journeying across the Void is a simple matter by comparison; sailing the phlogiston seas and drifting on ether winds. However, quicker and more efficient Void travel can by achieved by any number of "Hyperspeed" systems, which allow voidships to travel between stars at speeds not possible under the laws of physics as we understand them. Some Hyperspeed systems allow the ship to skim off of higher planes of reality, while others may transmogrify it into superluminous matter. Again, the methods that may be achieved to meet these ends are as endless as the ingenuity of the races that invent them.
Void travel is as varied in function as the myriad worlds that have invented it. A number of hurdles must be overcome to achieve it, including escaping the gravity of one's homeworld, surviving the lack of gravity and breathable atmosphere in the Void, and avoiding the many dangers that lurk in the Void's depths. Voidships, crafts designed specifically for Void travel, often utilize a variety of spell engines and magical generators to overcome these issues, as well as to defend the ships and provide their crews with sustenance. Journeying across the Void is a simple matter by comparison; sailing the phlogiston seas and drifting on ether winds. However, quicker and more efficient Void travel can by achieved by any number of "Hyperspeed" systems, which allow voidships to travel between stars at speeds not possible under the laws of physics as we understand them. Some Hyperspeed systems allow the ship to skim off of higher planes of reality, while others may transmogrify it into superluminous matter. Again, the methods that may be achieved to meet these ends are as endless as the ingenuity of the races that invent them.
The universe, infinite in its breadth and depth, contains more history within it that could ever be committed to a single memory. Much of the past has been lost, buried by wars, cataclysms, and the unrelenting march of time. As a result, secrets of forgotten ages and ruins of past civilizations fill the universe, waiting to be discovered and studied. The most coveted of these are the Astral Shards, fragments of a supreme construct known as the Astral Gate. In the Dawn Age, when the universe was young, the Astral Gate was constructed by the Dreaming Gods so that they may pass between their reality and ours to shape it to their divine will. It is not known what destroyed the Astral Gate, only that it brought an end to the Dawn Age, finalizing the universe into its current form, and the Dreaming Gods were never heard from again.
While the endless expanses of the Void are home to manifold nations and creeds, in this modern age, a scant few stand above the rest. Foremost is the Arc Luminous, a cooperative federation of hundreds of races and thousands of worlds, united in the pursuit of peace and understanding. Their substantial resources are dedicated to many scientific and altruistic goals, including Deepvoid exploration, and the construction of a Hyperlight portal network throughout their territory. Occupying an equally-sizable sector of the Void is the empire known as the Crux Tenebre. Commanded by the tyrannical Ilmaasi, the Crux is comprised of their conquered worlds and vassal states, their conquered worlds and vassal states, and so on in a pyramid scheme of oppression. These two factions have existed in perpetual rivalry for the last eight-hundred years, as the Crux continually attempts to conquer more of the Arc's territory, and the Arc attempts to repel Crux invasions and liberate worlds enslaved by them.
Neutral in their conflict, yet deceptively involved in it, are the Nine Spacer Guilds, sometimes referred to as the Nine. The Shipwright's League, Miner's Union, Mercantile Assembly, Scrivener Fellowship, Hyperlight Architects, Banking Houses, Libations Bureau, Agrarian Conclave, and Cartographer's College form a backbone of industry, economics and information that keep gears turning across the universe. Ancient treaties and contracts keep both the Arc and the Crux from interfering with the business of the Nine, who can impose swift and crippling sanctions upon worlds that defy them. Though each guild serves to peacefully balance the other eight, internal disputes are not uncommon, and the modest fleet of warships maintained by each of the Nine can attest to these conflicts turning bloody in the past. Though spoken of only in hushed tones, many believe that the Nine have conspired to prolong the conflict between the Arc and the Crux, exploiting it for their own profit.
While the endless expanses of the Void are home to manifold nations and creeds, in this modern age, a scant few stand above the rest. Foremost is the Arc Luminous, a cooperative federation of hundreds of races and thousands of worlds, united in the pursuit of peace and understanding. Their substantial resources are dedicated to many scientific and altruistic goals, including Deepvoid exploration, and the construction of a Hyperlight portal network throughout their territory. Occupying an equally-sizable sector of the Void is the empire known as the Crux Tenebre. Commanded by the tyrannical Ilmaasi, the Crux is comprised of their conquered worlds and vassal states, their conquered worlds and vassal states, and so on in a pyramid scheme of oppression. These two factions have existed in perpetual rivalry for the last eight-hundred years, as the Crux continually attempts to conquer more of the Arc's territory, and the Arc attempts to repel Crux invasions and liberate worlds enslaved by them.
Neutral in their conflict, yet deceptively involved in it, are the Nine Spacer Guilds, sometimes referred to as the Nine. The Shipwright's League, Miner's Union, Mercantile Assembly, Scrivener Fellowship, Hyperlight Architects, Banking Houses, Libations Bureau, Agrarian Conclave, and Cartographer's College form a backbone of industry, economics and information that keep gears turning across the universe. Ancient treaties and contracts keep both the Arc and the Crux from interfering with the business of the Nine, who can impose swift and crippling sanctions upon worlds that defy them. Though each guild serves to peacefully balance the other eight, internal disputes are not uncommon, and the modest fleet of warships maintained by each of the Nine can attest to these conflicts turning bloody in the past. Though spoken of only in hushed tones, many believe that the Nine have conspired to prolong the conflict between the Arc and the Crux, exploiting it for their own profit.
Magic, Sorcery, Psionics, the High Artes... Regardless of the name, it represents a fundamental force in the universe, and an integral part of society throughout its many cultures. Its origins and workings are strictly mysterious, though it is believed to have ties with the shattering of the Astral Gate. As there are as many traditions and types of magic as there are stars in the Void, decisively studying and quantifying magic is an exercise in futility; just as one believes that they have completely defined an aspect of it, a new phenomena will arise that invalidates one's previous conclusion. At best, magic can be categorized into several loose categories. Arcana is the form of magic most commonly practiced by mortals, and is the most diverse in its permutations and applications. Nearly any aspect of other forms of magic can be emulated by Arcana, but it seems most adept at manipulating matter and energy. Psionic magic is most often seen as an inborn ability of various races, rather than a learned technique, but there are those who have acquired it through rigorous discipline and practice. The power of the mind, Psionics allow oneself to exert their will on reality, most usually by manipulating the minds of others. Primal magic is the most common form of magic in the universe, as it constitutes many natural phenomena, including the stars themselves. Practitioners of Primal magic can bend the natural forces of the universe to their will, anywhere from the powers cosmic to the smallest worldly creature. The rarest form is Divine magic, the domain of the Gods. Those who come to wield the Divine can exert a small fraction of a God's power, but to do so they must be granted that power by a God, or in some way steal or siphon the power for themselves.
The vast majority of technology in the universe is inherently magical, or utilizes some means of magical power source. Given the vast range of diversity across the universe, wildly different technology or magics can be used to fulfill similar roles; where one society may use levitating permeable orbs for transport, another may use carriages drawn by mechanical beasts of burden. Nowhere is this more evident than in voidship design, which range from the star-eclipsing Umbral Dreadnaughts of the Crux Tenebre, to the vat-grown bioships of the Kamakiri.
Gods are mysterious and often misunderstood entities in the universe. As diverse and numerous as the myriads worlds themselves, their distinguishing traits are their supreme magical power, lack of physical presence in the material universe, and subservience to the metaphysical forces of the universe. Beings of pure magic and energy, they exist purely within the Realms Supernal, alternate dimensions that are parallel to the Realm Material in which all mortals live. They exert very little direct influence on the material universe, only reliably capable of communing with mortals and channeling their power through them. The very mightiest of gods can create brief breaks in reality by which they can bring their full might to bear, though these are extremely rare and momentous occasions. Given their inherently magical nature, Gods are ruled by the same forces that direct the flow of magical forces in the universe, the scales of Law, Chaos, Good, and Evil. Gods of particular alignment on these scales are diametrically opposed by Gods of inverse alignment, and often feel compelled to act against each other. These strange, instinctual conflicts dictate the majority of divine influence on the universe, and as a result guide the actions of individuals and organizations that follow and obey the Gods.
The vast majority of technology in the universe is inherently magical, or utilizes some means of magical power source. Given the vast range of diversity across the universe, wildly different technology or magics can be used to fulfill similar roles; where one society may use levitating permeable orbs for transport, another may use carriages drawn by mechanical beasts of burden. Nowhere is this more evident than in voidship design, which range from the star-eclipsing Umbral Dreadnaughts of the Crux Tenebre, to the vat-grown bioships of the Kamakiri.
Gods are mysterious and often misunderstood entities in the universe. As diverse and numerous as the myriads worlds themselves, their distinguishing traits are their supreme magical power, lack of physical presence in the material universe, and subservience to the metaphysical forces of the universe. Beings of pure magic and energy, they exist purely within the Realms Supernal, alternate dimensions that are parallel to the Realm Material in which all mortals live. They exert very little direct influence on the material universe, only reliably capable of communing with mortals and channeling their power through them. The very mightiest of gods can create brief breaks in reality by which they can bring their full might to bear, though these are extremely rare and momentous occasions. Given their inherently magical nature, Gods are ruled by the same forces that direct the flow of magical forces in the universe, the scales of Law, Chaos, Good, and Evil. Gods of particular alignment on these scales are diametrically opposed by Gods of inverse alignment, and often feel compelled to act against each other. These strange, instinctual conflicts dictate the majority of divine influence on the universe, and as a result guide the actions of individuals and organizations that follow and obey the Gods.
Though the universe is an infinite expanse of limitless possibilities, and the number of races that can be found throughout it are without number, certain recognizable patterns can be found among those typically found in the interstellar community. Though historians and scientists have debated and researched the subject for millennia, they have reached no definitive conclusion on the prevalence of certain "archetypes" of races throughout the universe, even on worlds that have had no known extraterrestrial interaction. The prevailing theories suggest some sort of precursor race that "seeded" much of the universe with life, ancient colonial efforts lost to time, or some combination thereof. The majority of intelligent life in the universe follows a general biological pattern of four limbs, upright posture, air-breathing, mammalian, two distinct sexes, at least five senses based in the physical world, and so on. Furthermore, common phenotypical patterns are recognizable, such as "human," "elf," or "dwarf." Among these common archetypes, many differences may arise ranging from the subtle to the distinct, likely due to genetic drift or differing environmental factors. Two races of significant biological difference may each call themselves "elf," or two races that are almost genetically identical may refer to themselves by wildly differing terms. In some cases, a completely divergent race may identify as one of the racial archetypes (for example, the fungal "elves" of Thallix IV), but this is generally assumed to be the result of mistranslation during some form of undocumented extraterrestrial contact.
The axes that dictate the flow of power in the Realms Supernal, the "alignments" of Good, Evil, Law, and Chaos,
apply to mortal races as well as Gods. However, as a single mortal existence is too insignificant to influence these universal scales, alignment is determined by one's race rather than individual actions. The terms of the scale indicate the general direction their race pulls the fate of the universe: toward Extropy (Good), Entropy (Evil), Stasis (Law), or Change (Chaos). Sometimes called "worldsoul" or "the collective unconscious," the bearing this designation holds on individuals is typically minimal, as it cannot even be measured without specific magical means. Alignment is most relevant to practitioners of Divine magic, as they are typically in regular contact with Gods, whose immense magical presence causes them to be ruled by their own alignments. Alignment is sometimes utilized in certain forms of magic and spellcasting, or is disavowed entirely in some circles in favor of other methods of universal objectivity such as the natural elements of Fire, Air, Water, Earth, and sometimes more esoteric elements such as Aether.
The axes that dictate the flow of power in the Realms Supernal, the "alignments" of Good, Evil, Law, and Chaos,
apply to mortal races as well as Gods. However, as a single mortal existence is too insignificant to influence these universal scales, alignment is determined by one's race rather than individual actions. The terms of the scale indicate the general direction their race pulls the fate of the universe: toward Extropy (Good), Entropy (Evil), Stasis (Law), or Change (Chaos). Sometimes called "worldsoul" or "the collective unconscious," the bearing this designation holds on individuals is typically minimal, as it cannot even be measured without specific magical means. Alignment is most relevant to practitioners of Divine magic, as they are typically in regular contact with Gods, whose immense magical presence causes them to be ruled by their own alignments. Alignment is sometimes utilized in certain forms of magic and spellcasting, or is disavowed entirely in some circles in favor of other methods of universal objectivity such as the natural elements of Fire, Air, Water, Earth, and sometimes more esoteric elements such as Aether.
Nova Dawn, an ancient relic of a voidship, believed to have been constructed in the Dawn Age before the shattering of the Astral Gate, is the home and livelihood for you and your crewmates. A light cruiser by most classifications, her stations and amenities have been designed for a crew of less than fifty, and her impulse speed is far from impressive. Were it not for the unique design and construction of the ship, most would regard her as a rusting, voidsalt-stained heap of a vessel, hastily jury-rigged and modified to accommodate the needs of her crew and abide by modern communication and Hypertravel protocols.
However, the unique features and benefits of Nova Dawn's ancient design make her a far more formidable vessel than she appears. The unique properties of her Hypertravel drive, which utilizes only an initial magical burst to catalyze a metaphysical chain reaction to slingshot Nova Dawn through the cosmos, makes her virtually untrackable when engaging in Hypertravel. Her targeting and defense matrices are far more advanced that a vessel of Nova Dawn's size should be able to accommodate, making her shockingly effective in ship-to-ship combat. While she has been retrofitted with the standard array of void shields, spell cannons and tass missiles, Nova Dawn has an arsenal of strange and unorthodox weapons and other gadgets that only the Captain seems to know the full extent of. Beyond all of those technological relics in value is Nova Dawn's Aethetic Lexicon, a database of starmaps and other information compiled over thousands of years by the ship's past crews and mysterious designers. Though heavily encrypted, even the smallest fraction of the Lexicon that can be decoded is a treasure trove of information. Secret smuggling routes, hidden treasures, caches of long-lost technology, and many other wonders are hidden in the Lexicon, waiting to be revealed to Nova Dawn's crew.
However, the unique features and benefits of Nova Dawn's ancient design make her a far more formidable vessel than she appears. The unique properties of her Hypertravel drive, which utilizes only an initial magical burst to catalyze a metaphysical chain reaction to slingshot Nova Dawn through the cosmos, makes her virtually untrackable when engaging in Hypertravel. Her targeting and defense matrices are far more advanced that a vessel of Nova Dawn's size should be able to accommodate, making her shockingly effective in ship-to-ship combat. While she has been retrofitted with the standard array of void shields, spell cannons and tass missiles, Nova Dawn has an arsenal of strange and unorthodox weapons and other gadgets that only the Captain seems to know the full extent of. Beyond all of those technological relics in value is Nova Dawn's Aethetic Lexicon, a database of starmaps and other information compiled over thousands of years by the ship's past crews and mysterious designers. Though heavily encrypted, even the smallest fraction of the Lexicon that can be decoded is a treasure trove of information. Secret smuggling routes, hidden treasures, caches of long-lost technology, and many other wonders are hidden in the Lexicon, waiting to be revealed to Nova Dawn's crew.
Name: Feel free to be fanciful here, but if you're going to make it unpronounceable, at least include a shorthand nickname.
Race: Obviously feel free to make up your own, or take a sci-fi spin on a more common fantasy race. Include as much information as you feel is relevant. If you plan to write more than a paragraph or so here, stick it in a hider.
Age: Universal Standard Years; try to keep it relatively reasonable.
Gender: If such a thing applies to your species.
Appearance: Image link or text description is fine. I'd prefer we shy away from photos and overly-stylized art.
Homeworld: Where your character originates from. They could be from an offworld colony, a ship, or a voidstation of some kind. Again, more than a paragraph should go in a hider.
Alignment: Cosmic alignment of their race/world, on the scale of Good (extropy) vs Evil (entropy) and Law (stasis) vs Chaos (change).
Role: What is their job on Nova Dawn?
Skills: What talents and abilities does your character possess? Magic they know, special technology they possess, and inborn abilities of their race should go here.
History: As long as you feel it needs to be, but there are a few key points I want you to hit: where they are from, how they learned their skills, how they came to be a pirate/mercenary/etc, and how they came to join Nova Dawn's crew.
Personality: Doesn't need to be especially deep, just give me an idea of who they are and what they are like.
Other: Anything I forgot that you feel is relevant.
Race: Obviously feel free to make up your own, or take a sci-fi spin on a more common fantasy race. Include as much information as you feel is relevant. If you plan to write more than a paragraph or so here, stick it in a hider.
Age: Universal Standard Years; try to keep it relatively reasonable.
Gender: If such a thing applies to your species.
Appearance: Image link or text description is fine. I'd prefer we shy away from photos and overly-stylized art.
Homeworld: Where your character originates from. They could be from an offworld colony, a ship, or a voidstation of some kind. Again, more than a paragraph should go in a hider.
Alignment: Cosmic alignment of their race/world, on the scale of Good (extropy) vs Evil (entropy) and Law (stasis) vs Chaos (change).
Role: What is their job on Nova Dawn?
Skills: What talents and abilities does your character possess? Magic they know, special technology they possess, and inborn abilities of their race should go here.
History: As long as you feel it needs to be, but there are a few key points I want you to hit: where they are from, how they learned their skills, how they came to be a pirate/mercenary/etc, and how they came to join Nova Dawn's crew.
Personality: Doesn't need to be especially deep, just give me an idea of who they are and what they are like.
Other: Anything I forgot that you feel is relevant.
