There was a kingdom glistening under the summer years, a home of unmatched progress that cast pity on the competition of the nearby regions in it expanse of the mind and the soul. It was a thing of beauty in which all could gaze upon, a empire that matched the mountains. That was before the plague came and darkened the clouds, now the sun is forever gone and the master crafted pavement only painted in vomit, bile...and blood...
What once was a city others strived to imitate became an carnivale of death and vacant houses. Thugs who value gold more than health roam nearly unchallenged by the paltry patrol of guards that haven't descended to desperate mercenaries. Those who dream of escape to the other kingdoms finds all bridges burned, the forest cut down and destroyed to stop the encroach of blighted animals, every light which might stop the desperate from falling to their doom in the puzzled cliffs snuffed. Those who fall...are the lucky ones...for the best method of quarantining the plague by foreign law...is burning.
Among the normal populace hope has been heaved from the body along with their homours, it is destitute of health of both the body and the soul. But a faint glimmer of resistance endures in this great city. The plague doctors guild has risen to the task and the nobles walled themselves off, warding off contamination while they scheme Chidehire restoration.
News has come of a counts halmet unaffected by the plague. A cure, yet all the kingdsmen are turned away or don't return. Is the one hope for us all harboured by an unfeeling coupe of attrition...or...is there a deeper evil underfoot this miracle?
ChideHire has lived under the oppression of the plague for 40 years now. At first it would seem the sickness would swallow the city whole, yet as time went on the plague doctors guild came and offered their services. Through heavy investment a massive organisation of plague doctors patrol the streets, setting up contamination shelters and even devoted a entire sewer system to safely dispersing of bile and vomit.
A treatment was found but not a cure. The plague causes dramatic swelling of the fluids in pustules and boils, by pumping, cutting, draining and leeching these vile liquids from the body the patient may make a temporary recovery. The fluids are pumped and dumped by the bucket load into grating covered pathways which lead into special sewer lines, the amount dumped so severe that the fluids flow like water through these at almost all times. These bile paths also act as deposits for puke, body fluid and sometimes even sewage by uncaring peasants due to the lack of indoor plumbing.
The nobles are quarantined off by a massive wall, staffed by guards and VIP workers who shoot anyone who tries to enter without permission on sight with cross bows. The heads of the plague doctor guild live here and tend to the care and coordination of the noble efforts, ensuring their safety. Inner farms and baileys along with secret passageways for boats to smuggle supplies from other towns keeping it fed and fat.
It is through this architecture and society built around the plague that has given Chidehire it's title of "the plague town"
The sexes are not equal in chidehire and men are expected to burden themselves with the greater responsibilities for the sake of the women. Chivalry is strong among the populace that hasn't degraded into depressed toiling patients and thugs. Men must approach, show intense signs of romantic interest, give dowries to the wife's family and make a contract to supply the family with a certain amount of money if the daughter and him stay wed. Women on the other hand enjoy almost assured security..albeit a boring life with little to acquire in terms of ambition outside of hobbies, if she is willing to accept the risk of medevial child birth and provide children.
While in the past these old customs were not so strident the plagues massive affect on the population numbers are only strongly reinforced these traditions. Families are scared and need to know their diminishing sources for continued leinage will be properly provided, women are terrified of the plague and almost seek to avoid work to protect themselves and men scarmble to be one of the few to have children before the plague inveitably takes them in one of their exposed feilds.
If you are a man you're almost guaranteed to die alone if you aren't middle class or higher due to lack of proper offering to the wife for her hand before the plague takes you. Almost everyone who isn't a noble is extensively exposed to the plague in the cities network and jobs, especially the lowest class who have to take jobs handling the bile excess in the sewer systems and disrupt blockages. You know you won't realistically live beyond 30...if lucky...you're more likely to die by 25 from such intense exposure to the plague as well as other hazards and infections.
If you work in the sewers and you're very unlucky you will literally drown in bile. If you work as a guard you will be killed by the massive roaming gangs or get infected in a fight and die. If you are a labourer, rabid animals will probably attack and infect you in the condensed woodlands. If you're somehow a desk worker, you'll work at home nearly all of your life and only open the door to buy groceries from the travelling cart or to go see a potential bridge.
Assuming a rival for one of the women not vomiting her guts up constantly dosen't kill you. Since why not, barely any guards.
Chidehire women are not treated in anyway out of innate sexism but out of cultural traditions and circumstances. When a woman insist on doing mens tasks or being independent they become known as a "man by action" which means they forgo all the legal rights of a women to expect as someone needing a guardian and takes on the responsibilities of a employee. Meaning no dowry, contracts of guaranteed stipend and no arrests for men that wrong them by running away after sex/promise to marry. Men by action are treated no differently to any other, they are not regarded as mentally or spiritually inferior. In fact men by action are regarded as virtuous for giving up a relatively easier life for one in direct community support or independence.
A good chunk plague doctors and preists are men by action.
Men by action, however, are not respected as potential brides. Mostly because Chidehire works on a ruling house legal system and who run the house is regarded as that who shoulders the responsibilities. This causes competition for who actually owns what and since the ruling house is considered to own everything, having two independents can easily result in either of them who worked to get what they have taken. This is not a result of divorce...this happens most of the time as considering who should be taxed.
Life is pretty shit for equal partnership here.
If you're a woman who is a men by action, read men so you can get hider idea of the types of job you'd be getting involved in.
Doctor Gregory Rey is the reason for the plague doctors rise out of snake oil salesmen and con artists. It used to be anyone could get a plague suit and go around selling bottles of piss and ink to the poor and the suffering, grabbing coins at others expenses, but when the plague town appeared he saw a chance to organise some real change. The guild is made up of qualified doctors, all who under training as a rite of initiation into the guild itself, you are not granted true admittance and thus pay until you successfully treat one patient so con artists regularly fail to get in.
The guild is paid by the year in bulk to assure to the continued treatment and proper disposal of the plague, with a promised massive pay out if they actually cure it. The plague guilds very existence all rides on chidehire, should they fail they will be seen forever more as nothing but scoundrels and crooks who used up the last of the good will in the one town that is desperate enough to accept them still. Should they succeed...a contract with the nobles promises the establishment of the guild as a national healthcare guild.
The stakes couldn't be higher.
How the plague came to be no one knows. It seem to spread within days to massive swaths of the city, it was only through the quick thinking and expensive rush building of certain barricades, quarantines and shelters that stopped the march of death taking place on every street corner. Shortly after the guild showed up and that is how we have chidehire as we know it.
The plague causes massive fluid build up in the stomach, causing bloated guts, excessive eye leaking, giant pustules of green, smelling mucus, excessive mouth pustules which when popped are naturally spat out and tend to infect more people. A violent reaction in the stomach that causes projectile vomiting and bleeding under the finger nails, inside the gums, inside the nose and on the scalp. A treatment of fluid excising, virgin herb and formulae combination and drugs helps patients treat the intensity of these symptoms to the point of relative normality.
Although they will inevitably fall ill again, at least they can live normally for a few months before it returns. If only we had a cure.
A place of sanctuary from the plague. It is essentially a small bunker with plague doctor costumed guards ready with spears and cross bows at out windows for anyone that tries to get in. The sufficiently high enough in the class system-nobles- or plague practitioners that get in have buckets of soapy water thrown over them. Scrubbed up and down, their clothes taken and washed. A second scrubbing/ bucket of soapy water while they're naked. Must kneel and say a pray of protection.
Then they may enter to get some sleeping bags and food. During this process they will have leeches applied and drink a fortitude increasing formulae made up of several unsavoury things. Finally they will all sit with holy incense filling the room to the brim while they try to relax.
The plague doctors are as limited by the times knowledge of the human body and organic world as the original medieval variants were. Right now there are 4 ruling parties on how sickness is spread and what are beast methods to research into dispelling them.
Burden of the Soul
The belief the soul rejects the body in disgusts and inflict diseases when mortal man has failed to live to higher ideals and this disgust can translate between one soul to another. Meditation, stoicism, religious practices and bodily treatment is the path to better health.
Burden of the Soul school have a very strong mind over matter perspective. They invented placebos and it is the success of this fake medicine that this school of thought bloomed. Keeping the body clean is paramount, after all cleanliness is next to godliness.
Germ Theory
Also known as Landscape theory
The belief that microscopic elements interact with the body to induce illness and the body being a environment much like the ground we walk on requires the proper application of sources to heal. They are very fond of drugs, amputation, removal of skin and blood, leeches and experimenting with new elements to the body.
They live by the idea of contamination and will make sure that not even blighted individuals will be within a meter distance of other blighted individuals. In this issue some blighted are kept in cylinder cages while being worked on with sticks to absolutely make sure no possible contact is made to anyone.
Filth Theory
The idea is that filth is an aspect of the human body along with faeces, earwax, snot, spit and so on. That somehow a lack of filth has allowed a foreign element of disease to intrude and make its home in the body. They spearhead practices on pumping and excising filth, bile, vomit and so on from the body. This idea of "natural filth" is elusive and like to mix a amount of human faeces, spit, snot ectr in their medicines in order to try and rebalance this disturbance.
Typically they use the patient own...leavings, as each individual is believed to have their own proper amount. Filth Doctors especially like to use a mixture of fungi medicine and studying fungi for medical treatment such as food spoilage and natural molds.
Evil Actions
The belief that spirits or things unseen inflict the curse via entering the body and causing disruption and harm. They practice herbs and appearance altering affects the most as it is believed the plague doctors design scars the spirits away, patients will wear a special mask themselves to help ward off such spirits and nice smelling incense, herbs and drinks are left about to help the body feel better.
They focus most on herbs with a long history of magic and anti-magic, many of which do work when properly applied with other medicines to strengthen the body and ward off the illness. They believe that properly honouring the dead and sanctifying homes with decorations helps ease these attacks. They currently believe direct ingestion of many fruits and vegetibles help strengthen the bodies supernatural resistance.
MOST plague doctors practice ALL of these to an extent, just to be safe.
> YOUR CHARACTER MAY DIE TO THINGS BEYOND YOUR CONTROL <
> EVERY CHARACTER MUST HAVE NO MORE THAN 3 FEILDS OF STUDY. EDUCATION ISN'T CHEAP HERE <
> YOU MUST -MUST- FORM RELATIONS WITH OTHER CHARACTERS PRIOR. EVEN IF YOUR RELATIONSHIP IS MERELY THAT OF AN PASSING AQUAINTANCE <
> THE RP WILL NOT START UNTIL I HAVE MORE THAN THE MINIMAL AMOUNT OF PLAYERS NEED (4) <
Noble Roles
As a noble you are granted pretty much any kind of item or training you desire. You have more than enough money to fund yourself the kind of life you want even if you are of the weakest and poor of houses. If you want to be a plague doctor though please use a plague doctor role instead with a noble background.
You are allowed two throw away NPCs as guards or servants. You may choose how detailed they are, but don't expect them to last very long. Their chance at long term survivial are low.
Plague Doctor
As a plague doctor your are tasked with keeping the sick city alive, you are forced to undergo training and then succsefully treat one paitent in order to start being paid. Once you become a accepted doctor you are given a doctor uniform, a small lab on wheels-roughly the size of a stall- which you have to pull around yourself due to the lack of healthy horses and a vast collection of tools. Your job is generally awful and a lot of plague doctors still get sick.
There are no pumps for siphoning bile and you have to pump out bile from people pustules. Use your imagination on how many careless doctor get the plague from that.
Unlike plague doctors of our past your shoes are steep capped, your waist of the robed is strapped to a belt and so are the tops of your shoes. This is to stop rats chewing or getting in and nipping you, giving you the plague. IF you are a victim of the plague you'll effectively be evicted from normal plague doctor luxuries at the guild and be forced to care for only the sickest of paitents or be forced to sit in the sick rooms with them when relaxing.
Check out The Plague and the Medical Philosophies to get better insight into plague doctors.
[CHARACTER SHEET BELOW]
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[color=cornflower][h1] CERTIFICATE OF CHARACTER [/h1]
Signature:[u] Name Only [/u]
Age of Signing:
Legal State: Independent man, indentured man, woman, man by action.
Portrait: A supplied portrait or painting of your person if possible. (can be written. Make sure to keep it to physical features such as face, height, eyes, age, ectr. Your clothes will be described as needed in your post since they may change from time to time)
Biography: A short-2 paragraphs roughly- biography of your character.
House History: A very brief run over your house. Keep it very short and at a glance.-2 paragraphs roughly, more or less- house is a legal term and can refer just to your family if you aren't actually part of a house faction.
Enterprise: Your job.
History of Blight: Do you have the plague now or in the past. If you have plague in the past, you are in recession from treatment. You can't be cured. Expect very different treatment if you are infected. You won't be allowed in the noble city and plague shelters will lock you away in a cold vault back while they cover you in bandages, excise fluids, forces drugs down your gut and have you in a room of other sick people and vomit buckets with overly strong incense everywhere. Your romantic chances are 0.
Wed: Are you engaged to be married, courting someone to be married or single?
[/color]
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[b]RELATIONSHIPS[/b]
Person 1
Your character qoute here regarding them.
person 2
your character qoute here regarding them
and so on and so on.
[/center]
Where we will start?
The RP will start within the sanctuary of the noble city. All characters will of had time in the noble city and mingled in the past, even if only on a associate level. Plague doctors are typically called into the noble city for meetings and to perform emergency checks up on the nobles as it is considered top priority, It's not unusual for a noble to have 4 to 7 plague doctors examine him and work together, even if it something as simple as they broke their foot...or they want to a cure for their inability to get an erection...
Nobles mingle because they have little choice. You are pretty much trapped in the city without good reason to expiditions outside. For many of said nobles this may be one of the few times in the last couple of decades you got outside.
You're welcome to make a plague doctor character, brother. But I ain't doing reservation since it tend to just clog up spots people end up not committing to sometimes.
@ScreenAcne alrighty cool about the character sheet I'm just a little confused on how it's set up so obviously portrait is appearance but some of the other stuff I'm iffy on
I wrote it weird because it was meant to come off as a bit of a backwards medieval document. But,motherfucking, I was also more dizzy than a druggy on a swing set so it might read a bit weirder than it should without my meaning.
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Enterprise: Your occupation. AKA: for you that just means write plague doctor. For a noble they have to choose an occupation.
Indepedent Man= You are not legally tied to anyone. You aren't indebted to the house or bound by law to serve someone.
Indentured man = you are bound to serve by law. Be it via paying off a debt you got from a loan or you have a criminal past you got to pay the crown off for ectr.
Man by action: I explain this in lore section, but basically, if you're a woman and you want to be indepedent and look after yourself. You're considered a man by action-eg: you are a man by virtue of your actions-
If you're a woman your not considered indepedent and so forgo certain legal rights-and get other legal rights-
Blight History: Blight is just a legal term for you got the plague. So it's asking if you're ill. Dosen't matter if its in recession or not.
Signature: Your character name goes here.
House History: AKA your family history. Are you from a farming family, how many generations of farming, do you have any rights to land, any specific deeds or house cultures. Typical medieval house culture/history stuff.
Biography: James was born on December ,12th of the 17th winter.(don't know the years so I hope this is ok) Born to a middle class family James was neither poor nor rich. Instead his family lived fairly comfortably. Of course they still had to work hard for their pay. Because of their financial situation James grew up with a simple philosophy " Be thankful of what you have now we it can always change tomorrow ".
James had grown up during the plague but luckily him nor his family never caught it. Once reaching his later teenage years James decided he would do something about the plague. Thus he decided to join The Plague Doctors Guild and receive schooling through which his family paid for. Once in school James focused more on the Germs and Filth practice instead of the Soul and evil deeds. He has been to the noble city multiple times but only to watch older plague doctors so he could learn.
House History: James family has almost always been middle class. They always sat comfortably in the middle but always lived with the idea that that could change . His family had almost always been artisans making beautiful clay creations for the people. While James certainly had the gift he decided to go a different route. his family had always been supportive of their children's dreams and paid for his schooling.(I can make this longer if need be)
Enterprise: Plague Doctor
History of Blight: James has not contracted the blight so far.
