I'll be using the 0th Post for certain important announcements.
5/11: NPC List in Character Tab has been updated! 5/17: NPC List in Character Tab has been updated! 5/28: NPC List in Character Tab has been updated! Gratz to Jason for being the first to ding! The Cave is getting low on resources... 6/6/2018: NPC List in Character Tab has been updated! Crispy's origins have become more clear...
6/16: GM-POSTS WILL NOW FOLLOW A NEW FORMAT. Based on which players are interacting at the time, I will sort everyone into PARTIES and respond to those parties as they complete their "turns." This does not mean you can't play solo, but I WOULD prefer that everyone not go solo all the time so as not to devolve into spammy back-and-forths with each player. I will continue to do my best not to leave anyone behind too much.
7/22: NPC List in Character Tab has been updated! 7/25: Gratz to Jason on being the first to Transform! Jason is Evolving! Dun dun dun dun...
8/9: CONGRATULATIONS! We've reached 500 posts! Keep it up folks, and there may be a little something extra in it for ya! ;)
5/22/19: CONGRATULATIONS! It's a little late, but we've reached 1000 Posts! Also, as of May 8th, the RP has been going for ONE YEAR! Everybody clap your hands if you believe--Just don't pray to the Demon King! ;)
7/19/2019: Everybody wish Jollan CONGRATULATIONS! After a lengthy PM session to catch him up, his character MIIBA is ready to join the rest of the Damned Heroes! In Other News, ALL PLAYER GROUPS ARE NOW ON DAY 5, albeit some are still in the morning and the Monster Party is in the early afternoon. Hopefully, a major overhaul of the NPC Tab will be in the future...along with a lot of other NEW characters...
The crystal clear memory, the moment of your death, burns at the back of your vision in exquisite detail. In this image, time freezes and every minutia stands out for you to ponder at your leisure. Behind it, the rest of your memories stretch into infinity like an endless hall of mirrors. Somehow you know you will never forget any of it. Moments of bliss and despair, weakness and triumph alike, engraved into eternity.
It would seem that you are alone, in this “eternity.” Endless white stretches out in every direction. Yet you feel claustrophobic, as if sealed in a box waiting to be opened. You stand upon a floor, but to look down reveals no shadow nor footprint. You are not sure if the pristine, featureless expanse is light, or void. You have a body, but your eyes, nose, and every nerve may as well be nonexistent for all the perception they provide.
But your ears hear a voice.
“This one’ll do, too.”
In white, there is now black, and with this disparity comes a return to sensation, to feeling. The gaping tear in reality, onyx flesh rent by necrotic claws, admits a man into your presence. His steps ripple upon the floor like water and bring with them undulating shadows. His red cloak's tattered hem reminds you of billowing flames. You can’t decide if his dark clothing is that of the plain layman, or that of the pragmatic general. His hair is blacker than ink, finer than silk, and his features might be considered handsome. But the red eyes and knowing grin are too unsettling. Shadows dance behind him, trailing like smoke. Are they the heads of many dragons, or some other beasts? Is it the phantasmal image of some hundred-armed figure, bearing weapons of destruction? You cannot be certain.
“Greetings, mortal soul.” He sweeps one hand out, throwing the cloak over one shoulder. “I’ll try to make this quick.” Now both of his hands extend, and beneath you the floor presents an image...an entire world laid out before you. A world that is not your own.
“Your world has quite the imagination, so perhaps you’ve heard this one before. An everyday, run of the mill, average soul is swept off their feet by a sudden, glowing circle of runes! Or a portal that appears out of thin air! Or, like now, they are plucked from death’s door. It doesn’t matter, as the end result is the same." He chuckles, and the infinite expanse ripples.
"You’re now a Chosen Hero, and you’ve fallen into a brand new world. Magic is real and brave knights wield magical blades against the forces of evil! You might become an adventurer! You could explore vast dungeons, discover ancient treasures! You might even get your own personal harem of romantic interests, or slay a Demon King!”
The salesman’s smile he wears now twists into a cold, seething rage with a mouth set in stony resolve. His fangs gleam white in a mad grin. With a thunderclap from his hands, the world below you disappears. The void around you goes pitch black. Somehow, he is still visible.
“But that’s not how it’s going to go! You see, I am the aforementioned Demon King. And this time, I’m summoning my own Damned Heroes!”
Something closes in on you; the claustrophobia before is now full blown restraint. The “Demon King” folds one leg over the other and either floats back, or sits on some unseen throne.
“Unfortunately, my followers don’t put much stock in “prophecy,” “blessings,” or “talent." And I find the idea of "cheats" to be overdone. You have to start at the bottom rung like everyone else, and claw your way up...over a mountain of corpses, if need be. Yet, I will allow you one boon: You may choose, from a handful of options, how your new life will begin. In both of our worlds, no one ever gets to choose the circumstances of their birth, right? So in a way, maybe I’m giving you the best deal of all…
Then again, all of your choices are pretty shitty.”
He shrugs, and the shell around you closes completely. You can no longer see anything, yet your other senses begin to stir. And you can still hear his voice, though it comes now from within you.
"Despite all that, in all your world's tales the Heroes are quite savvy. No matter their nature or abilities, they always seem to find a way. Yes...a way to completely, utterly BREAK whatever hackneyed system the gods design!" You can hear him cackle with glee. Then you hear an odd, almost digital sound right next to your ears. Images, each displaying a creature out of a story-book, appear before you.
"Choose among these weak and pitiful creatures. As you grow in power and experience, you will transform into something greater. Some have more options, and others may overlap. In the end it is reliant on you as an individual. Even if two of you become the same type of creature down the line, I doubt your abilities will be exactly the same." Strings of an unknown language appear below the images, and before your eyes they begin to make sense.
"As former Humans, your "intelligence" and "wisdom" will far surpass many “normal” monsters. Feel free to use your memories and knowledge to your advantage. Just beware of thinking you’re a big fish when the pond is merely small." With no other option, and with the closed in feeling growing stronger, you make your choice.
"Now, off with you! If you want more than a snowball’s chance in Hell of surviving the world outside your cave, defeat the Boss Monster! Use violence, subterfuge, even negotiation, I don’t give a damn! After that, make your way to my Palace...those who survive will be rewarded! Maybe I’ll even send you back home…" The shell emits a sharp crack. You see light.
You are reborn.
As you may guess, this is a Fantasy, Anime style RP in the growing “isekai” or “other world” genre. The characters were once normal people on our version of Earth, like you and me. After their deaths, they reincarnate as monsters under a mysterious King of Demons. It's like series like Re:Monster, That Time I Reincarnated as a Slime, I'm a Spider, So What, and a few others. There’s also noticeable influence from monster raising games like Monster Rancher, Pokemon, etc.
Though there might be references to terms like “stats,” “experience,” and so forth, there won’t be any dice rolling or number crunching. If the “stats” are revealed, they’re vague comparisons meant to show an Ogre is stronger than a Troll or something like that. They aren’t the end-all-be-all of combat.
Players will choose one of six monsters types to be when they are reborn, unless I'm convinced to add more. If you want to suggest a new type, remember you're all supposed to be weaklings. Start with the kind of mooks an RPG would have at Level 1. Depending on how many players we have, I’d like to have one of each or at least a good variety. The characters will advance by performing all sorts of actions. Fighting is one option, training or learning new skills is another, and then there might be some odd stuff you wouldn’t expect. There are three forms of growth: Skills, Transformation, and Variance. Skills are things like magic spells or proficiency with weapons. They typically improve with practice or personal insight. Transformation is evolution; a Goblin becoming a Hobgoblin and then an Orc, for instance. Variance is the most unique of the three, and is only earned through special instances that will likely become unique to each character. Depending on different characters' backstories, I may grant them a few "carry overs" from their past lives at my discretion.
Here are your choices:
Slime - The Tank of the group. In stat terms, they’d have higher HP and Defense. They have many options for Transformation, and are adaptable to almost any environment. As they grow they might gain shapeshifting abilities or better offense without giving up too much of their specialty. Starting Skill: Physical Damage Resistance I. (A bundle skill applying to all three types, Blunt, Slash, and Pierce)
Dire Rat - The Damage Dealer. It might seem odd, but even though they’re small their speed and strong jaws mean that taking big bites out of an enemy can be very effective, among fellow weaklings. Their Transformations will allow them to branch out into other beast-type monsters. These usually focus on being physically powerful and having sharp senses. Starting Skill: Beast Senses I (A bundle skill applying to all physical senses).
Wisp - The Magic Attacker. A floating orb of magical energy, this monster can fire spells from range and levitate. But it can’t actually “fly” and is very weak up close. As it Transforms it will grow more powerful magically, and may gain various elemental affinities. And of course it won’t stay a featureless glowing puffball forever. Starting Skills: Mana Orb I, Lesser Force I, Levitation.
Goblin - The Jack of All Trades. The long eared, big nosed, green skinned and child-sized peon we’ve all come to love. Goblins aren’t especially strong at anything, but they’re well-balanced. They are the first monster that can use tools, limited to simple things like sharpened sticks. As they Transform they can specialize more, but it'll be hard to match up against creatures with natural specialties. Starting Skill: Use Light Equipment.
Fanged Lizard - The Status Effecter. Physically not much, but a single bite has the chance to paralyze any enemy, even stronger ones. It can also spit poison to wear an enemy down over time. It has fewer Transformations than some of the others. Yet each one offers distinct advantages and may hint to some interesting possibilities…Starting Skills: Stun Fang I, Poison Spit I.
Pixie - The Healer. Like the Wisp, this tiny winged humanoid is magically focused. Though weak, its healing and defensive spells (one of each) allow it to work very effectively as part of a group. As it Transforms it may become more independent with magical offense or different elements. Starting Skills: Minor Heal I, Lesser Flight I, Shield I.
And here’s a rough draft of the character sheet, complete with an example:
[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Theme:[/b]
[b]Gender:[/b]
[b]Species:[/b]
[b]Appearance:[/b]
[b]Goals:[/b]
[b]Past Life:[/b]
[b]Abilities:[/b]
[b]Transformations:[/b]
[b]Inventory:[/b]
Name:
Theme:
(I feel like theme songs can help solidify the central idea of a character. But honestly this one’s optional.)
Gender:
(As fun as genderswap shenanigans can be, I’d rather they stick to whatever they were in their past life. Unless there’s a better reason for it than “isn’t this so comically inconvenient, lol?” or snowflake-isms)
Species:
Appearance:
(I’ll go into more detail on how the different monster species look, but any special physical traits--perhaps carried over from a past life--will be described here. For instance, maybe your Goblin has a more square jaw than most or beautiful blue eyes instead of piss-yellow ones. Maybe your Dire Rat’s fur has features of a certain hair style, or your Fanged Lizard has a tattoo that persists through all your forms. As time goes on you might add things like clothing or armor too. It may be difficult to find pictures for this, but feel free to use them if you can.)
Goals:
(Are you going to find a way back home? Just try to survive? Obey the Demon King? Go off on a tangent and try to experience this new world for yourself? These help flesh the character out, but they also allow me to build up more relevant story events or come up with interesting “quest” lines.)
Past Life:
(Give us a sense of their personality and backstory before they were reincarnated, but be aware that this will carry over into how they’re played. Don’t make them some kind of genius modern renaissance man who knows how to build firearms from scratch and program computers and is a black belt in several martial arts, but if you want them to have certain skillsets or knowledge they could carry over that’s fine. I might even grant them a few bonus abilities off the bat, depending on how well-fleshed out they are. That said, I don’t need an entire life-long biography.)
Abilities:
(Any Skills, Variances, or other traits you develop will be listed here. During the process of approving character applications I’ll let you know what they would have and you can add it during the final draft. You’ll also want to periodically update this as the RP goes on. The format will be Name - Description - History, with history simply being how it was earned (transformed, learned by doing X thing, learned from a book, etc.)
Transformations:
(This will be a record of what forms you’ve taken over the course of the RP. At first there won’t be anything here, but it’s just preparation for the future. The format will be First Species > Next Species > And so on.)
Inventory:
(Items like Weapons, Tools, Potions, etc that you’ll gather over time. There will be rules for which monsters can and can’t use certain types of items, but there will be a few things everyone can make use of...and with some ingenuity, maybe you can get around some of those equipment limits...The format will be a simple Name - Description.)
Bob has a blank, incredibly plain and round face. His beady eyes have no light in them, as if his soul has been swallowed up by some foreign emotion we cannot begin to comprehend. His nose is bulbous and round, like a green tomato hanging from the vine, but it never seems to wobble--indeed, it seems like Bob doesn’t breathe at all, as if he lacks the basic drive of life inherent in all other creatures. His mouth, small and barely hanging onto his face to spite his lack of a chin, is eternally frozen in an ever so slight smile. But anyone who sees him knows that Bob has nothing to smile about, and even if he did, he could not truly smile--for Bob can no longer feel.
Goals:
Bob knows only two things. The first is that he must build. The second is the only answer Bob has ever given to any question he was ever asked: Can he fix it? Yes, he can. These things are the sole purpose for the physical state that passes for Bob’s existence.
Past Life:
Bob was a simple construction worker. Nothing else is known, save that perhaps Bob built many things. Barns. Schools. Homes. Monuments. Towe̴ŗ̀͢ś̢.̢͘ ̷T̡e͞mp̧͘͝l҉̥̦̪̗̭̺͝ͅe҉̲̹͙͜s͚̪̗̰͖̕͘͟.̠̻̗̕ͅ ̸̠̦͚̼̠ͅA̡̛͏̗̺̰̫̩l̵̷̨̳̝͙̠ͅt̩͎̀a̰̩͇̦͢͠r̵̪̻̪͠ͅs̸͙̱̬̫̝.͝͏̰͚̪͖͙̟ Ṱ͓̹̲̮̀̕̕ḫ̸̹̻̣̼̖͓̭̱͕̲̯̻̹͟͢͝e̵̼̳̬̠̕͠ͅͅͅ ͘҉̲̤̗̜̫̗̜̘̺G̴̫͕͔̜͓̫̭͙̬͓̝͍̘̥͈̰͇̻͘͜͡a̷͏̪̮͔̜̳͓̙̦͇̺͝͝t̤͚̥̘͇̯̞͇̘̦͟e̴̼͕̜͖̻̲̹̥͔̗̲w̛͢͏̦̰̩͉͙̯̱͙̯͈̪̤̫̘̺͘a͏̶̵͍͍̗̲̗͍͓̘̥̥̠̹̺͉͚ͅỳ̨̞̺̖̫́͞͝s̸̶̗̗̺̞̬̻…̕̕͠͏͍̱͖͕͉̼̱̬̠̱̬̺͢ͅ
But nothing else is known. Nothing else is needed. Not even how he Ą͎͖̰̲̣̦͓̣͍͓͙͕̦̺ͭ̌̓Ŝ̸̷̜̹̦̟̺͕͎̪̲͈̯̟͓̰͎̩̟̈́͊ͫ̑̍́̀͝C̤̰̼̩̩̹̾̒̋̀͋͂̊͝E̳̦̩̼̰͔̠͉̯̙̘̘̗̱ͨ̈́ͥͮ͒̊ͫ͗̓̓ͫ̆͑͗ͯ̎̃͜N̸̛̛͈͍̳̮̘̼̯̘͚̮͚ͩͫ̽̑̈ͨ̇̿͟D̳̖̝̳̝̭̣ͣͮͥͫ͜Ḛ̢̠̥̬͎̱̩̞͖̞͈̥͇̪̫͈̯ͤ̈́ͯ̌ͯ̾̌̄̿̅̓̀͡D̶̞̮͈̲͇̠͉̮̫̞̗͎͉̳͍̒̉̾ͥ̌ͭ̽͘ died. Even in this new world, Bob must continue to build.
Abilities:
Light Equipment - The use of small tools, and lighter forms of armor, weaponry, and other items. Skill granted by birth as a Goblin.
Dextrous I - Your limbs are either delicate or skilled enough that you can manipulate objects very precisely. With different levels of Equipment, you can more effectively craft tools or even technology. Skill granted by Transformation into a Gremlin.
Medium Equipment - The use of medium sized tools, and most forms of weaponry, armor, and other items. Skill granted by Transformation into an Orc.
Job System - As a more sophisticated being, either your body or mind has developed enough to learn numerous skills even without transformation. Skill granted by Transformation into an Orc. Current Jobs Unlocked: 0th Tier.
Job: Carpenter I - A learned ability to be more proficient with various types of crafting, and to build larger structures. Somehow compared to others, the stuff you build is just better. Skill granted by application and practice of craft.
Eldritch Orb I - A burst of chaotic energies fired from the hand, which will cause random elemental magical damage and may also produce a random effect on the target. Skill granted by V͈̳̪͍a̰̬͙̬̝r͍̩͚i̝a̬͜n͏̻̣͍͚͖̮c̯̲̫̗͢e͇̟̥͕:̹́ ̖̯͚T͎̼̭̰̣̟͜o̟̠úc̳͖͙he̲͖̞͇̖d̹̦̞ ͍ͅb̛͚͈̳͎̬͉̝y̸̭͕ ̡̤͎̼̪̱̫t̻͢ẖ̢e̩͓̱̻̞̗͉͢ ̵̯O͖̝͖͙͔͞l̺͎̕d̠͉͚͖͟ ̢̘̞̻G̮͈̼͖̣̳̮o҉d͞s̰̺.
Transformations:
Goblin > Gremlin > Orc
Inventory:
Bob’s War Hammer: A sturdy wooden shaft topped with a steel hammer head; an excellent weapon, an even better tool. Bob built it himself.
Building Supplies: A kit including rope, nails, measuring tools, and a few other things a Carpenter would find handy. Bob took it from the burned out husk of the last town he visited.
NOTE: Bob’s character sheet is partially satire. The RP isn’t actually intended to be super-goofy, overly comedic, or lovecraftian horror. Thank you for your understanding.
This post may be edited at a later date if new information or changes to the rules/premise become available.
Those of you who have had characters approved already in the Interest Check, wait a minute so I can get an NPC thing at the top in the character tab. Once that's up you can put them in there. Everyone else, and any newcomers, PLEASE submit and application and wait for approval.
Goals:Reaching the best possible form the demon king can give. As a personal goal thats not really one of the characters is to become a beholder.
Past Life:In his past life he lived in a corrupt goverment. With famine, slavery, executions for minor things. Stuff like that. He together with a few other people had went to live in the caves where the goverment couldnt find them. They practiced their eyesight alot there to help them hunt and see in the dark caves. Usually for fun they would sing alot. Sometimes related to situations sometimes not. Peter also practiced lucid dreaming. To help him escape from reality sometimes and just have a good time. He didnt get technology at all from living away from it for so long. Eventually the goverment found them and killed them. When the demon king gave this offer he was happy to take it. Because maybe then he would live a good life where he can interact with more then just a few people.
Abilities:Mana Orb I, Lesser Force I, Levitation. Probably abilities gained from the past life added later by the gm.
Transformations:Wisp. Hoping to be a beholder sometime.
Even with the current lack of genitalia (which will hopefully change in the future) due to being a SLIME, Jason still happens to be a Male.
Species:
Jason is a slippery slimeboi
Appearance:
Jason is a SLIME; basically a big ol' wad o' green goo. What the fuck did you expect? A unique well-described appearance? Fuck you, he's goddamn slime for christ sake.
Goals:
Jason just wants to kick ass and take names, other than that, he just wants to take over everything, as he is a bit of a control freak.
Past Life:
In his past life, Jason was an African malitia soldier that eventually earned the title of warlord. Upon earning such a title, Jason began to change, he began to see so many problems, ones only HE could fix, and so he would, he just needed more control. Every other warlord, they held Jason back, while they still had power, HE could never succeed. Everything had to be under Jason's control, it was for the good of all, only JASON could make the world right, HE HAD, TO MAKE IT RIGHT. If it wasn't for that damned traitor lieutenant, he would've succeeded. He could've fixed it. As Jason drew his final breaths, tears fell from his eyes, all his good work was for naught, he just wanted to help everyone, why wouldn't they let him fix it?
@UltraCraftGames Looks good! I find his past life from the perspective of someone in a third world country (at least that’s what it sounded like) to be really interesting! I hope some of those cultural differences will come across through his personality and his perspective on the differences—and similarities—of this new world.
@Guy0fV4lor I like the additional flavor to his personality and history, but remember the characters are coming from our modern day world. Maybe somewhere less developed than the first world, but still our Earth. Having him be a former Knight or Lord kind of clashes with that. Maybe replace that with something like...a police officer who becomes chief/Sheriff/constable, but then the judge/district attorney/mayor won’t let him do things the way he wants to?
Btw theres a thing called wild magic in D&D which could be quite fun. Its basically a list of random effects that you roll a dice for which one activates. Certain types of mages get a chanche of this happening when they cast a spell or when some mage just messes up a spell. Or maybe you activate it on purpose. This is the biggest list currently traykon.com/pdf/The_Net_Libram_of_Ran… but its easy to find other ones or make your own.
@Zeroth Yo, Zeroth, just wanted to inform you I'm currently working on a Goblin char. I'm on a different computer and all my data is on my personal one but It should be dropped down later today. I'm hoping you'll enjoy the happy-go-lucky king-in-the-making.
@Guy0fV4lor Sounds interesting! Maybe your warlord could even be the guy whose forces hunted down UltraCraftGames’ cave dwelling rebels?
@UltraCraftGames Depending on the Past Life, there might be some qualifications for things that will be added to the character, yes. However, I don’t want to give them out until we have more finished characters because I don’t want people to think they have to/need to build their backstories for the sake of getting power ups. There is also no guarantee that every player will carry something over from their past knowledge.
The Wild Magic stuff might give me some prompts for ideas, thanks. But remember this isnt just a free form D&D game, it’s got inspiration from all kinds of RPGs and JRPGs on tabletops, anime and games, and even books.
Appearance: Standing at a height of 3'4" with a svelte build is kinda standoffish for a Goblin. When Yoda was Nowell Hawkwood he always carried a meek yet sly nature about him. Instead of being born one of those brutish, angry Goblins, he very much came back a bit more innocent and easier on the eyes. And despite wishing it gone, upon rebirth, he held the same knife-scar through his left hand. Instead of the dull and dreary pupils most Goblins have, he's been blessed with a rich, if not intelligent pair of brown.
Goals: Yoda's goal is to embrace the new world offered to him by the Demon King. When he was human he always schemed or rather daydreamed about ways to be influential and powerful. It was his goal then to become a senator or dare-he-dream president but when his life was cut short, he knew it was impossible. Now reborn as a Goblin he wishes to gather powerful allies and scrape out a Kingdom for his own amongst the Demon King's territory.
Past Life: Yoda's past life was cut short by a sudden, stupid case of White Knight Syndrome. Throughout his sunlit life in California, USA, Nowell always felt he wasn't meant for much. He was born to a optimistic low-class family that did there best with what was given yet had no aspirations to get better; only survive. Something, Nowell, fought against with what his father would call street-smarts.
His street-smart, literal smarts, and application of self-taught, book-learned, martial arts gave him a slight advantage over most. He was agile and lean, but strong where it mattered. Not many in his neighborhood thought to fight him one-on-one and eventually he gathered a group of friends that he quote-unquote managed.
For a time he felt powerful.
But that came to halt when he entered high school. With only a few of his friends left--others moved away or simply faded away--school had become a harsh reality-check. Jocks didn't care about his skinny friends and three strongman against a lone fighter never turned out like it did in the movies he watched.
Because of this, for a time, he ended up the punching bag of the popular kids. Who he was proud to say never faced him alone.
So it was his senior year when he died. And having to re-watch it for what felt like an eternity taught him to never, ever stick his neck for anyone, especially if he lacked influence or strength. That day was so hot and the school's crappy air-conditioning was on the fritz. Everyone was feeling cranky.
Nowell knew it was best to avoid his bullies. So he went down every shadowed corridor, he took all the shortcuts to his classes, hung out in empty rooms like he usually did. Except that day one of his classrooms weren't empty. Muffled noises, cries for help barely made it out. When he spied some of the jocks raping a female student, he just ... moved. It was unexpected and totally out of character but he moved to help her.
...
Last thing he remembered was being pushed out the window of the third floor. Arms flailing, wind blistering in his ears, a prayer that he'd break bones instead of die.
Then SPLAT! Dead.
That won't happen again cause for a few minutes he had to feel every iota of pain that came with death.
@Renny Only two things to point out: I intended for Goblins to be of the smaller variety in this setting, the kind that usually don't get more than three feet tall. If you've ever read the manga/light novel Goblin Slayer, it's like that: roughly as small and physically capable as a young human child, and typically as smart, but far more vicious and cruel. Of course your human personality would override that level of intelligence and that sadism.
The other is that you won't start the game with anything in your inventory--the things you find, loot, and build will be noted as you go. And as the beginning is inside a cave with a lot of other mook-tier monsters, rather than any proper weapons or armor you'll more than likely be making do with sharpened spears or rocks for a bit.
