[OOC] The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

[Lovejoy]

@The Angry Goat Yes! Bring it!

[Blubaron45]

I'll try to read all of this and get a character going when I'm out of school.

[Lovejoy]

Put together a world map image to show a general look at where everything is located.

[Sisyphus]

Color me interested. I'll try and throw a CS up today or tomorrow.

What would you say to a character whose etheric abilities are more based around mental manipulation, i.e. mind-reading or a 'compelling voice'? Just a character concept I'm toying with - kind of a trickster type who leans very hard on his abilities to solve his problems. I have a few other ideas if that doesn't pan out.

[Lovejoy]

@Sisyphus I love the trickster idea but I'm a bit weary about players being able to control other players' characters through mind control (if that's what your building this power up to), so I'm not sure how comfortable I'd be with that. Not to say that that's what your character would do, but the possibility alone makes me question if it'd be fair to other people's characters. Could you tell me a bit more about how it would work?

[Sisyphus]

@Sisyphus I love the trickster idea but I'm a bit weary about players being able to control other players' characters through mind control (if that's what your building this power up to), so I'm not sure how comfortable I'd be with that. Not to say that that's what your character would do, but the possibility alone makes me question if it'd be fair to other people's characters. Could you tell me a bit more about how it would work?

@Lovejoy

Oof, hadn't even considered that, that's a good point. The way I figured it would work would be that he could essentially charge a simple command or a question with ether such that anyone listening was compelled to answer or obey - it would take less ether for easy things, like 'sit down' or 'what's your name?', but the more complex it got it would eat more into the ether supply. It might also have some offensive ability if you'd be willing to allow that, like a command of 'hurt' causing someone to get a headache. If you're worried about player abuse, which is totally fair, perhaps the explanation could be that it's a rather inelegant technique, and anyone who was skilled in etheric manipulation (such as the other players) could counter it without even really trying? Again, I've got some other character concepts if this doesn't pan out, so if you don't think it'll work all you need to do is say so and I'll get cracking on one of those.

[Lovejoy]

@SisyphusThat's a perfect way of addressing my concern with that power. I think it can work that way, sort of like the "power word" thing from D&D. Maybe your character can be like the group's main interrogator and stealthy person? Looking forward to seeing your CS!

[Opposition]

I'll definitely be getting a character sheet up soon.

@Lovejoy
I am tentatively curious in 'using ether to summon demons'. I love the idea, but as its more of an esoteric sort of use, I'd try not to go overboard with abilities. Is there any more information I could get on what demons are like in the RP's lore sense-- that is, if you don't mind me using this idea. If you'd rather I didn't I'm sure I could come up with something else.

[Lovejoy]

@OppositionJHaha, I included that bit of info in there hoping that someone would use it, so yeah, your character can be a summoner. As you stated, you have to be careful with making this ability too powerful at the onset though. I'd rather our characters grow and become more skilled with their magical abilities as the story progresses.

I'll write up some info about demons for you tomorrow. Right now it's pretty late here and I need to go to bed!

[shylarah]

@Lovejoy I noticed, but I already have a beast tamer running around in a few different places and didn't wanna do demons. It's a /great/ idea, though! I'm thinking...hm. Actually, I'm toying with a few ideas. I know this gal's a strong mage, and a good fighter. Possibilities include nullification/antimagic, some sort of ability to use /other/ people's ether, force (pushing/pulling things), fire (thematically it'd fit her, but ehhh, not sure I want to)...actually, force as combat magic would be fun and I have a new weapon set I wanna use it with, but the really *interesting* ones are nullification or the ability to manipulate the ether of others. I'd need to keep it from getting too powerful, of course...but I can put limits on it easy. Offensively it'd put her at a huge disadvantage, and that doesn't seem like something the Seminary does...then again, just draining power doesn't work, you have to /put/ it somewhere. *flails around in the ideas*

[Scout]

Wow, this is BLOWING UP. :) Good to see it still catches interest after all this time.

I'll be working on a character tonight at my hotel or in the next couple of days if I don't finish. Reading through all this lore again is gonna be amazing <3

[The Angry Goat]

Name: Yerokhin Zlatek Stamenkovikj (Stina to his friends)

Age: 22

Height/Weight: 7’0”, 325 lbs

Race: Varyan

Appearance:
Yerokhin walks with a slight limp on his left leg, from a re-healed broken bone, and has a large scarring on the left side of his head caused by him falling from two floors up before breaking his fall with the side of his head on the side of a bench. The fact that he even lived is a miracle, the fact that the only real effect it had seems to be a slight slurring of his speech makes it even more impressive. The scar over his left eye he got from one of the training gambits, though at this point he’s forgotten which.

In addition to the usual armor, Yerokhin wears this style of helmet

Personality: Lawful Neutral // Protective // determined // hard-headed // Intense // Loud
His nickname means Wall in Ukranian. Yerokhin is in all fronts uncompromising, intense, and steadfastly faithful. This makes him come off as quite an asshole, since he expects a baseline of unquestionable loyalty to the Varyan state from any person before he begins to consider friendship. That being said, if you can tolerate the fact that he has functionally no off switch, expect a friend who can and will go to the absolute ends of the earth to protect you, care for you, and make you happy. He doesn’t usually question why things are the way they are, or if he could change his ways to make things easier; he instead just perseveres onwards until his way works, or he dies.
Also, don’t break promises to him. Trust me on that one.

Background: Yerokhin comes from a long line of Varyan war priests/clergy of various sorts, and was groomed from birth for the role he came to embrace. As one might expect, the devout nature of his patronage instilled the same love in him – especially since any questioning of “why” on the subject of religion was met with angry, stony silence from his father and mother. After training for his entire childhood, he was almost excited to enter the Red Seminary. And even then he still almost died at least twice.

Talents/Ethereal Abilities: Stina has an especially stong inner aether, but mostly uses it as a man used to using overwhelming brute force does: without finesse, but still to great effect.
1)Toughness: channeling his inner aether allows Yerokhin to withstand far more physical punishment than any one man should: broken arms, multiple gunshot wounds, etc. he’s already a headstrong sonuvabitch, this just makes him waaaay more so.
2)Strength/Speed bursts: a giant man with a shield the size of himself is one thing. One that just charged at you at 20 miles per hour is a whole ‘nother kettle of fish. These bursts of strength and speed last no more than 4 seconds, and allow him to lift about 1000lbs and move at around 20mph.

Stina generally chooses to fight with a relatively large one-handed axe, thought he does also keep a spear and a Rajko MKVI rifle strapped across his back, and three daggers in various locations across his body... and a gigantic two-handed executioner’s axe in his cabin, for special occasions. There is also a strap on his back for the shield (above the rifle and spear), as well as a set place on the steam ark for the shield when he is not carrying it.

The real star of the show is his massive tower shield. It is 6.5 feet tall, 4 feet wide, and as close to indestructible as is physically possible (so able to withstand a shell or two from a tank) – not only does the magic of the shield negate nearly any damage caused to it, but it also prevents the shock from reverberating through the shield and immediately breaking his arm anyway. At the press of a button, additional shielding is extended via aether powered clockwork, extending its width to 8 feet total (2 per side). The shield’s front is painted black, with a large version of the red circle of Varya dominating the middle. One might expect that a shield like this would be heavy. Yes.

Lee-enfield MKIII, the rifle I'm basing his on

Stina has basic survival skills locked down (especially hunting), but finds them of little interest compared to glorious war for his god. He knows multiple sets of unarmed martial techniques, and is extremely proficient in fighting with all of his weapons, with and sans shield.

Personal Seal:

Character Relationships: As a man unwilling to compromise not only on his faith, but on most other opinions, I do not expect Stina’s fierce and intense nature to attract many close friends. He is also reliable though, so who knows?

[BingTheWing]

@Lovejoy Would it be possible to have a powerful (read: edgy) Omestrian inquisitor whose ethnicity is an open secret? Also, what culture is Omestris analogous to, especially in terms of names? Do they have any defining physical traits?

EDIT: At what age are initiates accepted into the Red Seminary? Can anyone join, or must they be recommended by an inquisitor first?

EDIT 2: How are Omestrians 'harvested'? Do they work as menial slaves, pummeling the ice mines with balls of ether energy? Are they forced to meditate until they starve?

[deathbringer]

It went off a little bit and I make have taken some liberties, let me know if anything I've written doesn't fit it in with your idea of the story and I'll happily amend. It just sort of happened! I'm also a bit wary she may be power heavy so happy to tone back!

____________________________________________
Name: Mother Astraea

Age: 19

Height/Weight: 5ft 11, 140lbs

Race: Pure blood Lanostran

Appearance:

Astraea's body like her mind and past is full of conflict. Her facial features are marked only by a beauty spot on her right cheek. She looks pure and untainted, long silver blonde hair flowing to her shoulders but there is a hint of pride and arrogance in the strength of her brow.

The purity of her features clash horribly with her body which bears the scars and scuffs of a lifetime training for war. Her fathers beatings were savage and relentless and she bears the marks of scars and breaks from years of training. Nevertheless through her survival her physique was moulded to be strong and lean allowing her to move and fight with a perfect mixture of pace and power.

Her eyes are deep emerald seeming to dance with each emotion like leaves on the wind.

Background:

... yet when the full might of the Varyan armies was revealed the Lady knew there was no hope of victory, only valiant and noble defeat. Her anger was terrible to behold for she knew that she was stronger than the Ravenous One yet she could not harm him. She knew her people could deal a crippling blow to the Ravenous one's forces but at the price of their complete annihilation.

She raged in her chambers for many days yet her love for her people was too strong and she made her sacrifice so we might live.

Remember her last words to us:
"The warrior does not retreat he redeploys"

Extract from The Lady's Sacrifice by Sofia

These final words are ingrained in Lanostran culture and are interpreted in different ways. Many took it as the Lady's instruction not to fight on but to survive and assimilate into Varyan culture, accepting the place in society her sacrifice bought. However there is an extra part to the text that was taken out in the reprinted versions that are now sold today.

"It is said that the fallen tears of those that watched our Lady surrender bloomed into flowers at their feet. They bloom to this day as a sign that our Lady still lives."

These words suggest a more literal inflection to the Lady's words and it is for this reason the text was quickly considered heretical. Copies were seized and destroyed yet many were saved and smuggled away to remain at the heart of the sect better known as The Lady's Anger (henceforth to be referred to as the sect).

They agreed upon assimilation but with eyes for seeding themselves through the Varyan hierarchy (particularly the military) and eventual revolution. Though this sect had strong support to begin with, when the anger and hurt of defeat was still burning brightly, it has begun to dwindle after two decades of propaganda, peace and prosperity.

Lanostrans eyes have been opened to new worlds and new cultures that are in many ways more inviting and inclusive than the closed military culture of the Lady. Intelligence and ambition is now regarded above pure strength and honour and, to the disgust of the sect, Lanostran's have even bred with filth from other countries. Members of the sect keep strictly to the old ways leaving them arrogant and prejudiced, isolating them further from the people they claim to represent. Nevertheless due to their rigid and incredibly effective training programme they remain the best soldiers with the Varyan Armies and as such rise to the top.

Nevertheless the sect is currently in a time of crisis. They have achieved their mission of infiltrating the upper echelons of Varyan society and are ready for revolution yet despite their best efforts they are loosing the people. Do they compromise their ideals and approach other cultures, accept half breeds and even pure filth into their midst in the aim of freeing the Lady or continue to hold true to their beliefs with no hope of anything beyond a violent but noble death.

Mother Astraea was born into two parents that were both strong supporters of The Lady's Anger and as such was raised believing the inferiority of other people and the need for revolution. Her parents trained her in the old ways to be a clinical warrior and as tradition dictates she was sent out on her journey into the wastelands to kill a daemon.

Unlike other children she feared her first kill remembering the pain and anguish she had felt when she had first cut a young boy with whom she was sparring. His howl was primal but his pain had almost crippled her and the beatings her father had imbued upon her for not pressing her advantage had done little to numb her fear.

With nothing but spear and shield she advanced into the wasteland. Silence and speed her best weapon yet the daemon had outfoxed her. It came at her from nowhere knocking her spear to the ground and only her speed and shield prevented her from taking a mortal wound. Even as they circled the daemon taking care to keep himself in front of her spear she felt a single emotion like the drumming of a heart.

HateHateHateHateHate

She had never felt the like of it. She had felt fear and anger, happiness and sadness but never pure mindless hate. It filled her with a strength she had never known and with no weapon she attacked. Her loathing spurred her forward the shield knocking his claw aside her foot crashing into the daemons flank driving it backwards towards the rocks. Then her spear was in her hand and even as the daemons back hit rock she threw.

This was the one kill she would never regret. She has μισώ (greek for hate) tatoo'd on her neck on the left hand side to remind her that where people hated she would always find the strength to fight back.

Personality:
If Astraea had been born into another family she would never have picked up a weapon. Her very ether glows with a warm empathy that moves her with great passions and emotions that are unsuited for the battlefield. Nevertheless she was born and raised a pureblood Lanostran and so had a weapon placed in her hand as soon as she was strong enough to hold one.

She was drilled not to feel yet she is an individual whose very ether breathes empathy.
She was drilled to cause pain, yet her ether is designed to heal.
She was drilled to hate when all she wanted was to love.

She weeps openly as she flows across the battlefield with a sinuous lethal grace and though she tells her fellow inquisitors she weeps for the joy of battle it is because the pain and death that comes with any conflict causes her such pain she feels her heart might break. She is a deeply conflicted individual as easy to love as she is to hate for though she is empathetic and kind at heart; her upbringing not only drilled her to be a disciplined and skilled warrior but also to harbour a scathing distaste for anyone not of pure Lanostran blood.

Talents/Ethereal Abilities:
Pureblood Lastronan: Lastronans are deadly warriors trained in combat from a young age. Astraea has been trained to kill unarmed and armed in one of the more brutal and effective military training regimes. She is a highly disciplined and skilled warrior imbued with a code of strength and honour that can also be her undoing. A match for almost all in straight combat underhand tactics are dismissed by her with scorn and derision.

Ether Empath: Astraea's natural ether bathes in her a warm glow, nevertheless it seems to crave the presence of others and burn strongest when they are feeling stronger emotions. Astraea can naturally sense and feel others moods as if they were her own.

Healer: Astraea was thought to be without an ethereal ability all through her life and it was the source of many beatings from her father who tried to push her empathetic ether down a destructive path. Her true talent was only revealed when she left her fathers instruction to enter the Red Seminary where her empathy was no longer suppressed and downtrodden but accepted and understood. It was discovered to her great suprise and joy that Astraea has the ability to heal the majority of wounds and she is working hard to improve that skill. It is in healing that her real personality seems to appear. Mid battle she will get the opportunity to repair some of the damage she does to the world and help her fellows and she takes it eagerly her tears drying up as she places her hand upon the wound embracing the opportunity to repair some of the damage she has caused.

Orator: Astraea is not only able to sense others emotions but also instil a little of her own through her words ( I must stress she can't make anyone do anything only feel what she is feeling).

This is a gift she has kept closely guarded due to her own religious confusion however it comes out particularly in her healing as a form of anaesthetic. As she heals the wound she feels such joy at being able to help that as she talks to the individual she pushes that sensation across numbing pain and giving the patient a similar sense of euphoria. She keeps the fact closely guarded and pretends it is part of the healing experience for fear of what it may lead too (a heretical inquisitor would not be treated kindly) Nevertheless this power can come across unintentionally when she is feeling particularly strong emotions.

Personal Seal: Astraea's official seal is a blue hand with an open palm where the white lifelines make up a trident. The hand is representative of her position as a healer and the trident her heritage.

Character Relationships:

[Lovejoy]

@OppositionJ Here you go! Sorry for the wait!

The Black Glacier of Lanostre

Centuries ago, primitive Lanostran explorers came across a strange shelf of black ice rising up from the snow. Not knowing what lay beneath their feet, they began to dig. After many long decades they fully unearthed the mysterious object, and to their surprise, the tip of the object ended up being just that, the tip. What lay entombed within the ice was something unlike the resurrected human world had ever seen.

A monstrous black object, humming with an unknown crimson ether, lay alien on the earth. This dark arcane glacier, which stretched for miles across the frozen Lanostran sea and into the bowels of the ancient earth itself, didn't so much as suffer a scratch when struck with their most powerful weapons. Its dark visage across the western horizon of Lanoste would cause it to become a staying monolith throughout the history of the warrior nation, a sight as familiar as home to every child born on the Lanostran subcontinent.

The Black Glacier, as it would be known for the ensuing centuries, would pulse with its red ether like a beating heart, and the machine-like hum of its breathing could be heard from miles away on the Lanostran mainland. Its purpose and origin were unknown to the warrior people until many generations later when a corps of T'saraen scientists, upon hearing word of the strange alien-like monolith, braved the journey to Lanostre and crossed the stretch of frozen ocean (which would become known as the Wounded Sea after the bloody war between Varya and Lanostre several hundred years later) on primitive steam ships in order to glimpse the monstrous colossus with their own eyes.

Upon reaching the Lanostre border and being confronted by the Lanostran guard, the T'saraen science corps immediately dropped their weapons, threw themselves at the feet of the guards, and begged for an audience with the Lady of the Trident, claiming that they were there to uncover the secrets of the Glacier. In an instant, The Lady appeared before them and judged them true. Leading them to the black glacier, she bid them to study it and learn.

"Study and learn".

Those three words alone, spoken to them by the Lady herself, became their life's creed. The T'saraen scientists, swearing an oath to "get the job done by any means necessary and uncover the secrets of the Glacier", denounced their homeland, swore off all their lands, titles and research grants, and became honorary Lanostrans. And so it became that a small scientific enclave was founded on the Land of the Trident, and research on the Black Glacier proceeded with the help of native Lanostrans.

The ordeal to uncover the truths behind the Glacier would last several generations, with the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of those original ten T'saraen scientists taking up the task. Finally, after decades of work and sacrifice, the descendants of the Original Ten published their findings in a formal report to the Lady.

In truth, the black glacier first existed as a comparatively small shard of the Frost Titan that broke away during its apocalyptic battle with the Fire Titan. Unlike the 12 Remnants who would later become the Broken Pantheon, when this "shard" fell to the world, it didn't adopt a living, moving form but was instead entombed within the earth, where it remained for eons. Most fascinating of all, the Glacier possessed a sort of half-sentience, and its own breathing and the pulsing of the red ether that cascaded across its glassy black expanse like a beating heart were the key to understanding its language. Through the long decades of research and study, the Ten and their descendants were able to decipher its "speech", and as a result, were able to accomplish something truly miraculous. They were able to communicate with a piece of the Ice Titan that wasn't an actual part of the Broken Pantheon.

What they learned from it however, filled them with a dark dread.

Filled with power but without the means to use it, the shard had lived in silent solitude for countless ages, watching by as the dead world around it froze and was in turn resurrected, with no purpose but to seethe with rage at its imprisoned state. It continuously spoke one word to the science corps.

"Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate."

Upon hearing this, the Lady smirked.

She appeared before the Glacier, and spoke these words to it.

"You are naught but a speck upon the world, a splinter of our Father's might. You will act as you resemble, an iron anvil to forge my people into the weapons they needs become."

With that, The Goddess Lanostre placed her gauntlet-ed hand on the mirrored black surface of the Glacier.

"I can feel your malice, little one. Stoke your hatred. Unchain your wrath upon my people. They will fight back and sharpen their steel against you."

A brilliant emerald glow then flashed from her palm, resonating across the monstrous expanse of the Glacier in calm ripples of jade light.

"Tis' my Will."

The Goddess then disappeared, leaving the shard alone once more.

From then on, to this present day, the Queendom of Lanostre has been beset by periodic invasions of strange magical beings. These strange, inhuman entities, known as "demons" by the Lanostrans, were first pitifully weak, taking the form of small imp-like creatures. But as the decades have marched on, they have become steadily stronger and more vicious and cunning.

It has become a Lanostran tradition for children to slay one of these demons as a rite of passage, and though not many are successful upon their first encounter with a demon, those that are victorious are christened with the title "R'heon" (Lanostran for "demon hunter") and are then branded with a unique tattoo to mark their triumph.

After Lanostre's annexation by Varya, imperial Inquisitors have toyed with the idea of subjugating demons for use as soldiers, but this experiment has not been widely successful. In order to truly enslave a demon and be able to summon it to serve at will, an Inquisitor's ether pool must be extremely deep and their skill in its manipulation must be greater than normal as well. Because of this, "summoners" are nigh unheard of the Church, with only one Inquisitor, the legendary Mother al Sayed, having mastered the skill.

Still, the ability to summon demonic thralls is highly appealing to the Church, and thus the Red Seminary has introduced the Demon Pilgrimage to its curriculum. On the tenth year of training, young pupils who have shown the potential for having exceedingly great ether pools are given the choice to go on a harrowing journey to the Black Glacier, where they attempt to enslave a demon. Though they may bring three trusted companions along with them, the act of subjugating the demon must fall to the would-be summoner alone. Since the practice was introduced fifteen years ago by Mother al Sayed, no more than three pupils out of hundreds have successfully managed to capture a demon, and many more have perished in the attempt.

[Opposition]

@OppositionJ Here you go! Sorry for the wait!
The Black Glacier of Lanostre
-snip-

@Lovejoy

I like it! Yeah, I'll definitely try to make a cool summoner. The sheet should appear soon enough.

[Sisyphus]

Name: Hassan Qureshi

Age: 21

Height/Weight: 6’4”, 195 lbs.

Race: T’sarae

Appearance: Hassan is tall and thin, as well-muscled as an Inquisitor should be but with an emphasis towards lean mass. His skin is tanned (moreso than in the image – good art of non-white steampunk characters is hard to find), befitting his heritage, and his black hair and beard are kept closely trimmed. His face is almost never without its characteristic smirk, his eyes always glinting as though at some joke he hasn’t told yet.

Picture

As far as clothing is concerned, Varyan inquisitors wear a black form-fitting coat, with light armour covering the shoulders and chest. Smaller armoured pieces are worn over the wrists and boots. There is subtle red stitching lining the cuffs and outer flaps of the Inquisitor's black coat. Lastly, the symbol of Lord Varya, a red phoenix, adorns the breastplate. Males and females wear the same uniform.

Personality: From an outside perspective, Hassan is best described as a bit of a goofball – he’s quick-witted and friendly, always cracking a joke for his friends or playing a prank on those who annoy him. He’s almost incapable of taking anything seriously, a tendency that caused him a great deal of trouble in the Red Seminary. He exudes an aura of casualness and ease in almost any situation, and he has a confidence in his own abilities that borders on an ego problem. He prefers not to trouble himself with matters of deep religious thought, paying adequate respect to his god with no particular devotion or zeal, though that has not stopped him half-jokingly titling himself ‘The Word of God’.
Of course, all of that is something of a veneer. Underneath it, Hassan is a troubled person, deeply frightened of his own coldness and desperate to be the master of his own destiny. His casualness is born from a feeling that he is in control of any situation he enters into, and nothing makes him more unsettled than feeling that control taken away. He fears his fellow ether-manipulators due to his lack of power over them, yet at the same time he feels desperately a need for their companionship and approval due to his severe difficulty empathizing with anyone else – he relies on his powers totally in any interaction with anyone who can be affected by them in a way that makes it very difficult for him to have inter-personal relationships, which of course has resulted in him largely avoiding such interactions when possible. He’s funny, he’s charming, he’s always thinking, and yet he has a lot of trouble interfacing with a world that will not simply Do As He Says, and he knows it.

Background: Hassan was born the only son of two naturalized T’saraeni, scientists who had risen far in the government of Varya through their contributions to military technology – it was his father that designed the modern iteration of tanks used by the Varyan military, the armored backbone of the nation’s warmachine.
It was only natural that his etheric abilities would be noticed before long, with his family’s close proximity to the seat of power – especially because, as a child, the young Hassan quickly found himself with more power than he could handle. Upon the first manifestation of his abilities, he spent about half a day tyrannizing the Varyan palace’s kitchen staff before a squad of priests broke down the barricade he had ordered put up and pulled the child kicking and screaming away from his pile of pastries. From that moment on, he was identified as a great asset to the priesthood and taught to master his gifts in the Red Seminary, despite his attitude problems.
Hassan has long since lost count of the amount of times he nearly died during training, for a bewildering variety of reasons. Eventually, he learned to be compliant with his instructors, if not exactly a model student, and persevered through the training thanks to his cunning, his reflexes, and, of course, his powers.

Talents/Ethereal Abilities:
The Word: Hassan can imbue his voice with etheric energy in a way that affects the mind of anyone who hears it. Commands must be obeyed, from the simple such as ‘sit down’, to the complex such as ‘lead us to your hideout, unlock the door, and don’t tell anyone we’re coming’ – though of course instructions with multiple steps or which will need to last a long time eat up his ether reserves fast, so on the whole he greatly prefers being concise. Questions must be answered immediately and honestly to the best of the answerer’s ability. This power is inelegant, however, and as a result it’s quite easy for anyone skilled in etheric manipulation to counter it – oftentimes, they won’t even realize that they’re doing it.
Infiltrator: For the most part, Hassan relies heavily on his powers in the line of duty – however, he has also received a good deal of training in the arts of stealth over the course of the Red Seminary, from how to quietly enter a fortified location to slipping through a city street or a dark night without being seen. In combat, he prefers to use either his compact officer’s pistol or one of the several short knives he keeps on his person, though he absolutely detests fighting fair and will try to gain an advantage by any means necessary.

Personal Seal: A yellow symbol from the ancient T’saeran language on a white background: قول, meaning ‘word’.

Character Relationships: Once the cast is chosen, we're going to collaborate on creating the shared histories between the different people of our group. Your characters can be anything from friends, enemies, lovers, ect. Remember, you've all spent your time years training in the Red Seminary together and have suffered and bled throughout your time there, so your relationships must be forged of your experiences during that time together.

[Lovejoy]

Sorry for the double post, but I'll get to addressing everyone else now!

@Lovejoy I noticed, but I already have a beast tamer running around in a few different places and didn't wanna do demons. It's a /great/ idea, though! I'm thinking...hm. Actually, I'm toying with a few ideas. I know this gal's a strong mage, and a good fighter. Possibilities include nullification/antimagic, some sort of ability to use /other/ people's ether, force (pushing/pulling things), fire (thematically it'd fit her, but ehhh, not sure I want to)...actually, force as combat magic would be fun and I have a new weapon set I wanna use it with, but the really *interesting* ones are nullification or the ability to manipulate the ether of others. I'd need to keep it from getting too powerful, of course...but I can put limits on it easy. Offensively it'd put her at a huge disadvantage, and that doesn't seem like something the Seminary does...then again, just draining power doesn't work, you have to /put/ it somewhere. *flails around in the ideas*

@shylarah

@shylarah That all sounds cool, except for the bit about fire magic. After the Fire Titan's death all those eons ago, "fire" as a tangible force within the natural world no longer exists. For much of what we use fire for, the people in this world use ether instead. Think of ether as like fire, but not really. More like a divine energy that exists in people's blood that can burn like fire and give life like fire. What ether really does is not really warm or heat, but shrouds lifeforce from the deadly cold that permeates the world, so its more like a magical veil that keeps blood from freezing, if that makes sense.

Ordinary ether that comes from people is blue, but Omestrian ether is gold and more potent. With but a liter of Omestrian ether you can power an entire household for several months, but it is very rare for the common person to obtain (since most people don't own slaves or can afford to buy the ether that is harvested from them). Everything from ammo cartridges/magazines to batteries contain ether in them. Most of the ether that's used to power weapons and everyday objects is white ether, which comes from beasts and animals, and is more common but less potent. There is also red ether, which comes from demons, but it is highly volatile and there hasn't been enough research done on it to see if it can be used in any form.

Now, your character can have the ability to use ether in a weaponized form. It'd probably manifest as like, colored waves of energy (depending on the kind of ether they used to power it).

@The Angry GoatAwesome character! Loving the full pedal-to-the-metal bruiser thing you've got going on! I only have a few corrections:

- I think 7'5 is kind of pushing it. Would it be cool to put him down to like, 6'10? When I included Varyans being tall as a thing, I wasn't picturing like, giants :p

- Seeing as how we're lowering his height a bit, could we make his shield a tiny bit smaller as well? Also, I don't think it should be nearly indestructible, but it could be able to withstand a ton of damage (say, a straight tank shell, as well as lower-level magic spells?) and he'd have to have it repaired from time to time. The mechanism that allows his shield to extend is pretty cool! About the aegis being an actual physical object that exists in his shield, that isn't really how the aegis works. The "personal" aegis is more of a constant-effect magic spell that an Inquisitor in a warband maintains for the safety of their companions and the soldiers under their command. So think of it as like, the Aegis Inquisitor (also known as The Protector) being a very important member of the group who has trained specifically to be able to maintain this aegis for an extended period of time. So basically, they'd be like a beacon that needs to be protected at all times, so they'd stay at the center of the group. Owing to that, I don't think it'd make sense for Stina to be the Protector, as the bursts of super-strength and superspeed would require intense concentration and would probably interfere with him casting the aegis at all times. Seeing as how you fashioned your character to be more of frontline tank, maybe you can abandon the aegis idea since it doesn't seem to fit with Stina's MO. Just a suggestion.

- I didn't make this clearer before, but kids generally are taken to the Red Seminary when they are 7-10 years old and the training lasts for 12 years. So the part about him "training his whole life" should be changed to "training his entire childhood".

- Oh, this one's my fault. But I decided to change the symbol of Varya to something more thematically suitable. Instead of a red phoenix, it's now a solitary red circle, to signify His emptiness and well, I just think it fits better.

Besides that, I think we're good!

@BingTheWingYes, you can be an Omestrian Inquisitor, and no, their race wouldn't matter if they were a priest or soldier. Yes, you will be discriminated against by certain people but it wouldn't affect your ranks or treatment by the Church, as long as you showed your worth, strength and devotion to Lord Varya (or at least managed to convince them enough)

About the culture analogue, I'm honestly not sure. I pictured the Omestrians as being multi-cultured, so they would be kind of a mishmash and wouldn't conform to any set naming or cultural conventions or anything. They were, after all, about freewill. I would think the Omestrians would have a multitude of skintones, from pale skin to black skin, the only thing they have in common would be the color of their pupils, which is gold.

Like I mentioned to Angry Goat, kids are accepted into the Red Seminary when they're 7-10 and graduate 19-to-22. Not just any child off the street is accepted, they need to possess some form of potential, and thus they are usually brought in by common priests who could recognize the child's budding ether ability, soldiers , or recommended by people of high social standing, like a former master or something of the like.

The life of Omestrian slaves is a brutal existence, some more than others. Most common Omestrian slaves live in squalid ghettos in the lower depths of Magnagrad, where they're put to work doing menial tasks (aka maintaining infrastructure, cleaning streets, digging tunnels, ect). Others live as house slaves, and live their day to day lives serving rich families. The worst, are those judged to have potent ether running through their veins. These unfortunate souls are then taken from the ghettos and from then on live only to have their ether siphoned from them for use by the military and church. They live in cages like animals, their humanity stripped from them because all they are is oil to the Varyan people, and exist in a state of perpetual weakness-- as having ether harvested from your blood brings one to a state of near death, and medical attention is immediately required else one falls into a coma they won't wake from.

As for how they're harvested, I'm not really sure! I was thinking some kind of horrible needle-like device is used and then it sucks the ether out into vials? I don't know, any ideas?

@deathbringerGoddamn! I knew you wouldn't disappoint! What an awesome character! I think it all fits, though there are only a few minuscule things I'd like you to change.

I thought it'd be interesting if all Lanostrans eyes were bright green, like... pines reflecting off ice? Sort of. I made Lady Lanostre's power a bright emerald color in the bit about the Black Glacier, so maybe this could be the color of the eyes of her people. If you'd rather her eyes be blue, then that's cool.

I love, love, love the idea about a secret Lanostran sect aiming to bring her back to power. I had an idea of doing something like that, so it's cool that you got in front of me on this. One thing though, it's been twenty years since Lanostre surrendered to Varya, so I'm not sure if the bit about "they are at a similar crossroads to the Lady's own quandary over 200 years ago" to be reflective of this, but yeah, it's only been 20 years since the Lanostran War.

The last thing is just a suggestion. I added the bit about the demons and how Lanostrans fight them as a kind of sport, so maybe youy can include a bit about how this affected Astraia as a child. Was she successful in hunting a demon? Does she have the title of "R'heon" and a cool tattoo? Let me know!

@OppositionJI forgot to mention this, but feel free to come up with any ideas about demons and how they function/what they look like/ect. I was thinking there were different "orders" of demons, and maybe your character can start off as having captured one of the weaker varieties, but please, go ahead and get creative with this!

[Lovejoy]

@SisyphusAccepted. That's all I have to say. :)

[The Angry Goat]

@Lovejoy adjustments made - I'm keeping him over 7 feet though :P