Hidden 6 yrs ago 6 yrs ago Post by FujiwaraPhoenix
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FujiwaraPhoenix Archer Inferno

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The main thread for the RP is now live! You can get a quick link to it from here.



Fairstone City, located on the West Coast of the United States, is a city that only recently crossed the boundary between 'urban' and 'not'. Supporting a hefty population of over 750,000 people and comfortably situated alongside the water, the growth of the region is not something to be looked down upon.

Of course, that only applies if viewing the city from a "normal" perspective. To the groups of Contractors—Anchors—acting within society, Fairstone is simply another region to spread their influence—especially considering that the United States as a whole may as well still be a relatively clean slate for them to expand into. To what ends that influence may be used or what it holds in store, of course, matters not to those who seek not to gather or to destroy, but instead protect with the powers they hold instead.

That, of course, refers to the members of Soulflame: a new faction of Contractors, based within the United States, that only sprang up in the last few decades. Their goal, simply put, is to keep the multi-faceted war between the Anchors at a standstill and prevent the encroachment of their progress into the nation any further. Though their goals may clash at times, it remains to be seen what will come of all these groups meeting in this land.

Magic

Magic, as it stands here, is all based around 'contracts'. Contractors, people who perform these rites, are able to borrow the abilities and powers of higher beings (a category that includes deities, angels, demons, youkai, etc.;) and use them for themselves. No contract is without a cost, of course, but one thing remains constant regardless of the parties affected: to break a contract means to pay a 'fee', and things like that are never cheap.

Contractors and Contracts

Contractors are, as stated earlier, are the people who make 'contracts' with higher beings. Their ability to contract with specific higher beings usually depends on a person-by-person basis—while bloodline may play a role in how often a certain figure contracts with a family, it is not a one-size-fits-all sort of deal. In fact, the opposite is true; sometimes, a completely normal person may have a higher affinity towards making a contract with an upper-class deity than an nth generation descendant of a carefully pruned bloodline. The difference, of course, lies in the ability to make contact in the first place and the affinity between said person and the target deity.

Contracts, unlike most binding law documents of the modern era, are flexible—they bend, change, and warp depending on the parties involved. Most Contractors are low-level contractors in any given organization. In other words, they can only invoke elements and ideas that their contracted party has dominion over (for example, Zeus and lightning magic go hand in hand). As a Contractor gains more familiarity with a deity's power, then they can seek to 'improve' the contract that they already hold. The means to do so, of course, differ on a case-by-case basis, but that steps beyond the power of simply invoking an affinity and into being able to create a sentient familiar of their target deity if they so choose, as well as higher-level magic, proficiency with equipment that said deity might be famous for, and so on and so forth. This, naturally enough, leads to a rank that people are seldom able to even see in action—directly borrowing the authority of a deity to act as they so desire. Even the lowest class of higher being is difficult to become attuned to, but even doing that goes beyond what most middle-level Contractors will be able to defend against, much less fight directly.

Contracting a being usually requires some sort of connection—whether it be by sheer luck or some sort of connection (usually in the form of something the Anchor has). There is always some degree of luck involved in making contact in the first place, though, and more often than not higher beings will take offense if you cut off communications with them midway. Negotiating is not the only way of creating a contract, of course, as higher beings are often subject to their own whims and may cut an easier or harsher deal depending on what they see from the one making contact in the first place. Rarely will they reach out on their own to make contact with a human, though, and rarer still will they break their word. Gods of trickery and some Outliers, of course, are the exceptions to all of this, and though not all Outliers are malicious, they may hold their own goals as more important than the lives of a single (or many) humans.

Of course, breaking a Contract is a severe thing, and one that is often punished by those who are most in tune with that being on Earth. Whether that means a fine, the disappearance of family, eternal torment, or even death... Once again depends on the level of authority that a deity has and the sway of those who are contracted to them.

Hierarchies of Beings

Higher beings can be divided into four distinct categories: 'Upper Deities', 'Deities', 'Supernaturals', and 'Outliers'. Contractors will ever only contract one Upper Deity if all the stars and planets align and they were born under an auspicious star (a fancy way of saying that they hit the jackpot when they were born) or if they managed to somehow work hard enough to catch said deity's eye, but all the others are, for the most part, open for discussion with people who can contact them in the first place. Of course, most Contractors opt to make a Contract with a single Deity (ideally) and maybe a Supernatural (or a few, depending on their strength), but once again, this only really applies to those who have the potential to do so. Contracting two or more Deity-level beings is almost never seen, but the rare cases that do manage such a feat are valued highly by the Anchors that they are a part of.

A general idea of each category is as follows:
  • Upper Deity: These are the most famous among their respective pantheons, and are names that are known the world over for their power. Odin, Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Brahma, Shiva, Vishnu, Osiris, Horus, Ra, Izanami, and Izanagi are just a few examples of this class of deity. This category also includes beings such as archangels, such as Gabriel and Michael, as what the three major monotheistic faiths of the modern era see as God is notably absent among this list.
  • Deity: These are the other gods and archangels not mentioned among the prior listing. Though they may not necessarily pale in comparison to upper deities in terms of strength, they are also more open to conversation with humans in general. Examples of this include Thor, Athena, Ganesha, and so on and so forth.
  • Supernatural: Anything not encompassed by "Outlier" resides here. This category includes demigods, people who were deified after death, and even a few named creatures famous for their feats in life reside in this category. A common trait, of course, is that they all share some form of divinity or divine ancestry.
  • Outliers: This is a category that contains a mishmash of beings that may be considered 'less viable' or 'secure' than the other three. Examples of beings in this category are beings such as the Titans, beasts such as Fenrir, the giants of Norse mythos, or possibly even some of the famed beings that terrorized Japan (such as the Yamata-no-Orochi or Taira-no-Masakado). Not only is contacting these being more difficult, but it is also INCREDIBLY dangerous to do so without prior preparation, as many will just as easily swallow a Contractor whole as they might simply strike up a conversation. Of course, named demons (such as those in the Ars Goetia) are also among this number.


Other Supernatural Creatures

Creatures not in the listing of 'higher beings', such as dragons and their ilk, do exist—however, they are few and far between, and most are now either kept in secret captivity, hidden away within the far reaches of the earth, or hide right in the middle of human civilization. All of them are intelligent to some degree, but they cannot contract with higher beings (unless they gain enough power to be directly subordinated) and can only be taken on as familiars by humans otherwise.

For the sake of this RP, beings in this category are not playable as a 'main' character. They can act as pseudo-NPC tagalongs, though, but only a maximum of one per player (and even then on a case by case basis).

Anchors

Anchors are the factions that represent any given pantheon of a religion—for example, there exists an Anchor for Greco-Roman gods, one for Norse gods, and so on and so forth. Generally, members of an Anchor will be contracted to one or more beings under the domain of their pantheon (or sometimes, none at all), but each one's individual goals vary wildly depending on their abilities, history, and sometimes even sub-faction.

For the purposes of this RP, only three characters from other Anchors will be allowed in—this number is subject to change based on the population of the RP at any given time. Each Anchor's name will be hidden until they become relevant in the RP, at which point the 0th post will be updated with their information in turn.

Soulflame

Soulflame is a group that originated in the United States (and is based in the United States) that has been slowly gaining traction ever since the end of World War II. It wasn't until this point, when the other Anchors had to retract resources to help their home nations recover from the war, that they were able to form in the first place.

The goal of Soulflame is, in essence, to keep North America neutral in any power-grabbing schemes on part of any of the Anchors. They exist as a deterrent to the Anchors but also seek to aid in a more globalized world. In other words, they incorporate technology into their operations just as much as they do Contracts and familiars and other such concepts—a fusion of old and new, if you will.

Most, if not all player characters in the RP should be a part of Soulflame.



Notes

RPers may only have up to two characters in the RP, not counting any pseudo-NPC subordinates.

I'm not going to be TOO picky about who can access what level of being, but at most there should be a single lower-middle level Contractor among the starting group (assuming the number of RPers is somewhere around five to seven). Two people with Upper Deities at most, and if an Upper Deity is contracted, no other Contracts at the start. Deities are fine in general, but keep to a single Contract party for now.

I want to stay away from 'teens save the world' in general, so the ideal age range is about 20-24 on average for a younger member of any given group. Child geniuses may be options, but... One at most, and I'll be scrutinizing any form like that for detail.

If you plan on making an Anchor character, I want to see the rest of the form before I give the name or goal. The character will help inform the rest of the group's actions and structure, for the most part... Assuming it gets through my QA.

If you want to figure out where a specific being lands on the hierarchy chart, you need only ask.

Any other questions? Also feel free to ask here; I don't mind attempting to answer any inquiries that pop up.

In any case, here's a form for those interested.


Of course, since this is an interest check, nothing will be set in stone until a suitable amount of people throw their hats in the ring. This RP will remain open for the forseeable future, after all, so please, feel free to poke your head in if you wish to join.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by TheFake
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TheFake

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I'm in, got a couple ideas to narrow down.

On the character sheet, what do you mean by Level? Is it the ranking of their contracted party or something else?
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Rin
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Rin

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I might have an idea but we'll see how that works out I guess.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by golani
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golani nope

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I am interested, and may want to play a character from another anchor/pantheon
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Silvan Haven
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Silvan Haven Interstellar Paladin

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I'm a bit confused about something.

"If you plan on making an Anchor character, I want to see the rest of the form before I give the name or goal."

Wouldn't the person making the character come up with those things?
Hidden 6 yrs ago 6 yrs ago Post by FujiwaraPhoenix
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FujiwaraPhoenix Archer Inferno

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@Silvan Haven: Great question! Yes and no. It's more of a collaborative effort in this case, where the RPer in question is more giving stuff to be vetted first. If I like the name or the ideas of the Anchor better, I'll shift plans accordingly and retcon before they're formally introduced to the RP itself.

Basically, if you want to do the extra work, then by all means do it, and if it fits with what I had in mind (or is better), it'll become the new canon.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by VitaVitaAR
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VitaVitaAR King of Knights

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Oh right interest!
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by KoL
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KoL Knight of Lorelei

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Oh, this seems to be right in my zone of interest. I'll see if I can think of any good ideas for a character.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Tominas
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Tominas

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Interested.

This looks exactly like my cup of tea. I've got a few ideas, just gotta narrow them down. That being said, I love the idea of drawing power from old monsters, so it's probably gonna be Outsider based
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Instigator
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Instigator

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@PKMNB0Y
Are Great Old Ones and Elder Gods a thing in this setting? I'd love to make a character who contracted the Yellow King or the Gate-And-Key or even just Shub-Niggurath.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by FujiwaraPhoenix
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FujiwaraPhoenix Archer Inferno

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Hey, cool, people! Nice to see all this interest; I'll probably drop an OoC in a few hours or something.

Now, question answering time again.

@Instigator: Nope, no Lovecraft access in this world. Even if there was, it's not something I'd allow a player to have access to, since... Well, look at the usual end result of people coming into contact with those beings.

But yeah, no, no Lovecraftian horrors here, friend.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by RolePlayerRoxas
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RolePlayerRoxas The Thirteenth Something Or Other

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I'll throw my interest in. Might take a few days before I can stsrt work on an idea though.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Silvan Haven
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Silvan Haven Interstellar Paladin

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Consider me interested enough to start thinking up a character.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Dead Cruiser
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Dead Cruiser Dishonour Before Death / Better You Than Me

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Had an idea for a character with Tiamat as a patron? Has sort of sea monster themed powers, topping out at sort of Kaiju stuff. Thoughts?
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Silvan Haven
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Silvan Haven Interstellar Paladin

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How would that translate into normal person sized powers?
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Dead Cruiser
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Dead Cruiser Dishonour Before Death / Better You Than Me

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Water/ocean/weather sort of powers, maybe having something to do with spawning minions, perhaps turning into a fishman?
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Tominas
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Tominas

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That moment when you want Fenrir as a patron solely so that you can make jokes about disarming people.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by FujiwaraPhoenix
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@Dead Cruiser: Tiamat feels like she falls into the weird situation where she has, like, double the amount of authority than most other gods (water and creation on top of being the mother of monsters that went on a god hunt) on top of being a major antagonist in the mythos the originates from. I'm thinking that she's more in the weird Upper Deity-Outlier limbo, but that aside, I don't think that Tiamat is the best choice.

Especially if, y'know, the group is trying to keep quiet. Kaiju messes are way too conspicuous, to be honest, and making monsters (even if they're just goons) is on par with creating supernatural life from nothing, which already exceeds the scope of what I'm assuming most characters would be able to pull off. Not to mention, well... Contracting with an Upper Deity Outlier means that there's always the worry of working against humanity as a whole, and since Contractors are often beholden to the whims of their patrons to some extent due to the Contracts, well... Bad news ahead.

In any case, I think this is suitable enough for an OoC, so roll call for the others who haven't been mentioned yet...

@TheFake@Rin@golani@Silvan Haven@VitaVitaAR@KoL@Tominas@RolePlayerRoxas
Here you go!

Oh, and before I forget: Most Outliers should have a good reason for being contracted for me to give them the okay, okay?
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Enigma
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Enigma Mostly Harmless

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*excitedly throws hat into the ring*
Sounds like something I'd love to participate in^_^
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Dead Cruiser
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Dead Cruiser Dishonour Before Death / Better You Than Me

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@PKMNB0Y I'm not married to the idea but I figured I might as well offer up a chance for compromise. Because Tiamat is dead in her own mythos, perhaps the contract is with the "echo" or "memory" of Tiamat? Something like a god being unable to completely die unless they vanish from human memory? As a result of this, perhaps Tiamat is far less powerful than you would expect a god of her scale to be, but at the same time she has much less awareness/agency than a normal contract. The most difficult thing about contracting "dead gods" being actually communing with them. What do you think?
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