Fate/Castle of Glass
The Holy Grail War, a bloody conflict between mages known as Masters and their respective Servants, Heroic Spirits summoned as powerful familiars. While such a concept was born in the Far East, at a city so unimportant that most don't even remember its name anymore, it has spread far and wide after the secrets of the ritual were leaked through a series of unfortunate circumstances, several decades ago.
Many attempts at recreating the ritual ever since have resulted in degrees of success that range from "very close but not quite enough" to "utter and total disaster for everyone involved".
The key for a complete Holy Grail seemed to have died with the ritual's original creators, all of which vanished from history without leaving any discernible traces.
It seemed that the once great ritual was fated to never be seen in its full form.
That is, until now...
Clock Tower, London, 2005
"Whaaat!? That cannot be!"
The office of the Modern Magecraft Studies Faculty was shaken after its current head, Lord El-Meloi II, let out a shouted out of nowhere.
Even though the cause for it was obviously the letter that he crushed with white knuckle strength, his assistant, Gray—a mysterious silver-haired girl wearing a hooded cloak despite them being indoors—turned towards him and asked, "Is there any problem, Sir?"
"Yes. Prepare everything, we are going to America," Lord El-Melloi as he let the letter go and lit a cigar before taking a long drag.
"America? May I ask for what reason?" Gray asked in her typical soft voice.
"It turns out that..."
Black Rock, Somewhere in the Northeastern United States, Many Decades Ago
"It was hiding under our noses all this time," said the voice of an old man, apparently well past his sixties, but in truth probably much older, thanks to his origins as a magus.
He couldn't believe at what he found while excavating a new cellar for his mansion. He heard of the Holy Grail War before, but never took any part in it because the ritual was—from his understanding—fundamentally flawed. There was a missing piece that no one could ever find the way to correctly replicate.
However, what he found was exactly the piece that was needed to make it work. He didn't know how it came to be buried under his property, but the fact that it was here in undeniable. Any magus worth their name that set their eyes into it for even a second would know what it was.
Using it he too could create his own Holy Grail War. No, he could create the greatest Holy Grail War ever conceived, and, maybe he could get that which he wished for more than anything else.
"Certainly, it wouldn't be impossible..." the old man said to himself while looking wistfully at an old, discolored portrait.
Building a new cellar could wait, this was time to begin preparations for the moment that would change his fate...
The Story
Welcome to the "First" Great Holy Grail War. A bloody conflict brought forth by one man's lucky discovery.
I don't think that there's any great need for much explanation regarding the Fate universe and lore at this point in time. Especially if you read everything thus far.
Nevertheless, the short version of this RP's setting is a Great Holy Grail War, a conflict between two sets of seven Masters and Servants paired in teams, usually called Red and Black Factions.
The conflict will take place in Black Rock, a small city of the Northeastern United States whose whole existence spins around its rich coal mines.
In the late Fall/early Winter Magi from all around the world (and maybe a few fortune non Magi) received an invitation letter to take part in a "True Holy Grail War".
The invitation was signed by someone who went by the name of Antoninus. It didn't present anything other than the invitation itself, and information about how to reach the Holy Grail War's site. Nevertheless, it came with undeniable proof that it was the real deal since anyone opening the letters would immediately find themselves with a full set of three Command Seals which marked them as the Masters chosen by the Great Holy Grail that went missing all those years ago. The last piece required for a successful ritual that no one was ever able to replicate.
Upon taking notice of it, the Mage's Association—or rather, a small faction led by Lady Reines El-Melloi Archisorte—sent an observer to the place of the conflict. The Church also decided to take part now that the Great Holy Grail was undeniably involved, sending their own Overseer who's supposed to work with the Clock Tower's observer to ensure that the ritual doesn't get out of the way.
The Setting
As mentioned above, the Holy Grail War will happen in the small city of Black Rock, located in a still reasonably lush valley at the Northeastern United States. Despite being an old city, it remained a relatively small location, whose whole reason of being revolves around the coal industry.
It's an isolated place, as untouched by men's hands as possible. The perfect staging grounds for the Greatest Holy Grail War in history.
The Holy Grail War staging grounds will consist of a few regions, spread over the roughly 100 square kilometers area of the Black Rock valley in which eponymous was founded.
The valley is divided in two by the Black River. One of the parts is a southeastern portion of about one third of the total area of the valley, which is mostly where Black Rock City is located, and the other is an opposite northwestern portion with the remaining land. By the river's margins lay a set of train tracks and a narrow road which are the only way in and out of the valley other than from the helipad at the local hospital—which is only used for medical emergencies—or a few mountain trails known only by the most experienced local hunters.
The city itself is divided in a few neighborhoods:
- Two main residential districts: an older one at the north, close to the Mines and the Railyard, which consists of pretty much all of historical Black Rock. And a new one built on the foothills, close to the new Downtown.
- The New Downtown: The main economic center of modern Black Rock. This is where most of the city's key infrastructure is located, like most banks, the hospital, and the few hotels worth speaking of. The tallest building around is the Monarch Hotel, standing at an impressive 18 stories, which is about twice as tall as any other building in the city.
- The Mines and Railyard: the oldest, at the northernmost edge of Black Rock and still most relevant place in the city. You can say that if anything were to happen to it to these locations, Black Rock would likely be bankrupt in less than a generation.
- The Historical District: technically part of the northern residential district. This is where you'll find the oldest church of the city (The Chruch's representative's headquarters), as well as the local university (The Clock Tower's representative's headquarters) and a museum dedicated to the city's history.
- The Valley: Just about two thirds of the Black Rock valley are covered in almost untouched woodland. It's believed by historians that the hills to the north might have been inhabited by natives, trying to escape the disastrous consequences of the first contact with the European settlers, but the remnants of this mysterious tribe have never been found even when using satellite imagery. That said, other tribes from around the region say that this land is cursed and won't set their feet there for any reason.
- The Beyond: There maybe other places worth looking for in the valley (like caves in the mountains, abandoned mine tunnels around and under the city, and old Native American ruins hidden in the woods) but, for the most part, the ones listed in the notes above are the "official" staging grounds of the Holy Grail War.
The Rules
Now, for the most important part of this post: the rules.
Simply put, I'm willing to allow pretty much any concept of Servant (canon or not) or Master to be used, as long as they abide to a few simple rules to make things manageable:
- First of all, any Servants that would have exaggeratedly high staging grounds bonus (e.g.: pretty much any great American Hero/historical figure who could qualify as a Servant) can't normally be used. Exceptions can be made for those who would otherwise get low enough bonuses or be mediocre enough that a high staging grounds bonus wouldn't matter.
- Likewise, anyone born after 1905 (who's not a canon Servant), anyone who's not dead (except for Merlin), and purely fictional figures/people who don't/never existed, cannot be summoned as Servants either. The same applies to Lost Belt Kings and anyone else whose existence doesn't belong to the Greater History of Mankind. However, because this is a hell of a muddy issue in canon, whose rules aren't known in enough detail, I'll be ignoring the existence of the class of beings known as Phantom Spirits (e.g.: The Freeshooter, Yang Qing, etc.). Anyone who has been declared as a Phantom/unsummonable for no specific cause (e.g.: Michelangelo, etc.), who makes sense to be able to be summoned as a Servant (i.e.: Doesn't contradict any of the other summoning rules), will be eligible for summoning.
- As usual, pure divine spirits, and pseudo/demi Servants aren't available either. However, if the entity bonded with a human as a Pseudo Servant in official works is summonable in and off themselves (e.g.: Sima Yi, Zhuge Liang), they can be used as Servants.
- While I'll not outright ban the usual suspects (Gilgamesh, Ozimandias, Achilles, Hindu legendary Servants, non Berserker Heracles), there'll be a condition to allow them to be summoned detailed further down. Keep in mind that those Servants have a very high upkeep cost to maintain, so you might end up killing your master and jeopardizing your own fun if you pick one of them and go too hard too fast.
- When doing OC Servants, please, avoid composite skills who aren't canon (and even most of the canon ones). I'll probably not approve of any Servant who's abusing this rule because compositie skills are a plague that favors power over lore. Also be mindful of the skills you pick. I don't want to see all of the warrior Servants totting Bravery for example. Look at what the skill does and what it means before picking it.
- While on the matter of power gaming, please, don't make your Master into Bazett, Touko, anyone like them. Mages are very flexible and interesting, so don't simply do anyone who's a clone of an overpowered canon character. However, this doesn't mean you can't do a top-notch Master, just try to be at least somewhat original about it.
- In addition, regarding Masters, not everyone needs to do one if they don't feel like it. I know how the eternal wait for Masters kills 9/10 of the Fate RPs before they can get any momentum so, I'll be allowing unpaired Servants if that's what it takes to try to get this rolling. It would essentially be a situation like that of the Red Team in the Great Holy Grail War of Apocrypha (sans the poisoning/brainwashing), so it's kinda fitting to have this War be more about the Servants than the Servants.
- I'll also allow the possibility of bystander PCs and, or assistants/side cast characters for the sake of diversity.
- I'll be taking a maximum 14 Servants—7 for each team—and up to, but not necessarily, 14 Masters as well. There's not a set limit for side characters/bystanders, but I might impose a cut if I think the number of characters in the RP is growing too large.
- Lastly, in the matter of characters, every player will be allowed to have up to two, however only one of them can be a Servant. Just be thoughtful/considerate when you sign up. If you have no ideas for a Master, please say so. Don't leave people waiting just because you might have something in mind. Also, please declare which of the two factions your Servant belongs to when you sign up for one.
I guess that this covers pretty much all of the important points I could think at first. Bear in mind that I reserve the right to the final say in any matter.
Character Sheets
Below are the character sheet templates including any information necessary to create a character for this RP, if there's any doubt during the character creation process, don't hesitate to ask.
Masters
- Name\Title: Your character's name. You can also include any titles, pseudonyms, etc, that they may have here.
- Appearance: Your character's appearance. Either an image (no real people images/photos, please), (short) text description, or both would be alright.
- Short Bio/Synopsis: As the prompt says, keep this short. Think of that like the description of a character that you read on the back cover of a book. If you can't do this under a limit of—at most—four paragraphs, I'll ask you to trim it down until it fits.
- Magecraft: Any important details relating to your character's magecraft skills. This can include, but isn't limited to their family crest (if they have any), their magecraft foundation, any signature spells, sorcery traits (especially Mystic Eyes, if they have any), and a general overview of how good a mage they are.
- Mystic Codes: A wizard's tools. Make a mention of any important mystic codes your character may have with them, as well as their main functions. Generally speaking, no sane mage would leave for a Holy Grail War (or leave home at all) without bringing a few tools with themselves, so keep this in mind while building a character.
- Misc/Other/Trivia: Anything else not covered by the sections above that you may judge to be relevant (like an unhealthy obsession, an important secret, a very strong goal, their personal ethos, etc). Please keep this section short as well. Preferably have this in bullet point format, if there's any information to add.
- Special Boon: Every mage should have an "Ace in the Hole" that they can deploy to instantly turn the tables of a situation or give themselves an great advantage before the war even begins. In way, these boons are analogous to a Servant's Noble Phantasm (in terms of storytelling relevance) so keep that in mind when deciding what to pick and when to make use of them.
Here's a list with examples of boons that you may pick, or you can ask about something else that you may be interested into:
- Superior Magical Skills: for example, being a mage from a noble lineage within the Association, with power and prestige to match your name, or being a mage that comes from an unusually strong/exceptional bloodline/a freak mutation granting you access to a magical power humans are normally unable to have. This can include things like having a Reality Marble, a Finality, a superior familiar that can't be reproduced by modern magecraft, a spell who borders on the realm of True Magic, etc.
- Superior Mystic Code: Similar to the above, but concerning Mystic Codes. Those could be anything from Jewels capable of releasing A Rank spells with a single action, to a nearly complete Philosopher's Stone, to even an unassigned Noble Phantasm that still remained in the World after its original owner passed on.
- Superior Sorcery Trait: Again, like the above, but for thing like high grade Mystic Eyes, and freakish bloodline abilities, rather than spells or Mystic Codes.
- Dead Apostle of Renown: Exactly what it says on the tin. While anyone can be a random Dead Apostle with no powers or skills worth mentioning, with this trait, you can be one that's significant enough to make a name for yourself in the mystical world. This doesn't mean DAA levels of power of course, so don't go too overboard if you pick this. Also keep in mind that the Church won't offer any protection and will in fact actively antagonize any known Dead Apostles involved in the Holy Grail War.
- Executor/Knight of the Holy Church: Again, exactly what it says on the tin. Anyone can be a member of the Holy Church, but you are a member of one of the many special branches that compose the Church's active arms. Keep in mind that this means that you'll have automatic ties with the Church, but also not be subject to asking for protection from the Association's representatives.
- Superior Servant: With this boon, your Master is allowed to summon a Servant from the partially banned list (i.e.: Gilgamesh and co.), or a Servant that would have strong Staging Grounds bonus while being strong themselves (e.g.: George Washington and most of the other big name American heroes). Of course, to make better use of this trait, you'd have to reach an agreement with someone else looking forward to play one of these characters.
Servants:
- Class: Your character's class. Only the Seven basic classes are available normally. However, a Mage with the Superior Servant boon can Summon an Extra Class Servant from any canon Class other than Ruler, Beast, and Moon Cancer. If you wish to play one of those, try to make an agreement with someone else. Also, bear in mind that summoning Extra Classes requires a team to give up on one of the Cavalry Classes.
- True Name\Title: Your character's true name. You can also include any titles, pseudonyms, etc, that they may have here.
- Alignment: Your character's alignment. Good, Evil, Neutral, Lawful, Chaotic, and—for Berserkers—Mad, Insane, etc.
- Appearance: Your character's appearance. Either an image (no real people images/photos, please), (short) text description, or both would be alright.
- Short Bio/Synopsis: As the prompt says, keep this short. Think of that like the description of a character that you read on the back cover of a book. If you can't do this under a limit of—at most—four paragraphs, I'll ask you to trim it down until it fits. Given that they are based in pre-existing works/history, you can omit some of the backstory for a Servant, instead giving a link to their entry in a wiki/encyclopedia/etc., if you so wish.
- Stats: Your ranks in STR, END, AGI, MAN, LCK, and NP. They can range from E to A (very rarely EX), as normally, and have any modifiers you judge necessary, as long their triggers are logical and everything is explained within reason.
- Class Skill: Your character's Class Skills, the ranking system follows the same instructions a above.
- Personal Skills: Limit of 3 for OC Servants unless a really good explanation is made. The instructions on rank are the same as above.
- Noble Phantasm: Limit of 1 to non-Rider OC Servants and 3 for Rider OCs, unless you have a very strong case on your side I'm very much unlikely to let you break this rule.
- True Name/Title: The true name and title (flowery kanji name) of the Noble Phantasm
- Rank: Follow the same rank rules as above once again.
- Type: Anti Unit, Anti Army, Anti Fortress, etc. Think well before choosing this.
- Range: The typical format is something like 1 - 99, but there are others that could apply on specific circumstances like 0 or -. Use your best judgement to determine this but don't overthink it too much.
- Maximum Number of Targets: How many people can your NP hit at once. This is very self-explanatory, but the biggest number possible should be around 1000 people. More than this is rather unnecessary.
- Description: What your Noble Phantasm is, what it does, and how it looks. Keep this as concise as possible as well. For example, you are not obliged to, but if your Noble Phantasm has a really long list of effects, consider listing them in a bullet point format for clarity, and brevity's sake.
- Misc/Other/Trivia: Anything else not covered by the sections above that you may judge to be relevant (like an unhealthy obsession, an important secret, a very strong goal, their personal ethos, etc). Please keep this section short as well. Preferably have this in bullet point format, if there's any information to add.
