[OOC] cancelled

[Heat]

♫

Whoa, thought it was a nightmare, Lord, it's all so true
They told me, don't go walking slow, the devil's on the loose

The year is 1969, at the height of the Vietnam War. The brutal conflict has captured the eyes of the world, as young men are sent into the mysterious, beautiful jungles of Vietnam. The U.S. Marines lead the charge for the invading American forces, the war growing unpopular in America as many of its brave young souls are pulled away to engage in a war halfway across the world. Songs of protest fill the radio as the bodies pile up in the horrific conflict. Nevertheless more young men enlist to fight, while others are drafted into battle, plucked from their homeland. As napalm burns the fields more helicopters full of soldiers fill the skies. This story will center on one particularly unlucky squad of Marines, who encounter unspeakable horrors behind those typical of war as they are pulled further into a conflict which none of them truly prepared for.

Welcome to the 7th Marine Regiment's 3rd Battalion, soldier.

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The setting is pretty self explanatory, having been explored in a multitude of films and television shows, as well as personally experienced by millions of veterans. This roleplay desires to further explore the conflict, detailing the brutality and horror of the bloody war whilst injecting a healthy filling of supernatural and paranormal thrills. These fictional elements will add more unpredictability to the tale, while our squad's journey will serve as its backbone. The storyline will be linear in its scope, with plenty of twists and turns. The player characters will all be part of an American infantry squad of Marines, their relationships and personalities adding further thrill to the story. My ideal composition of the squad is a mix of backgrounds, perhaps some of them are fresh faced young men while others are soldiers on their latest tour of duty. Historical accuracy is not of high importance here considering the supernatural elements which will implemented. It is going to get pretty dark and violent.

The roleplay will begin with the squad's first mission together, as what starts as a simple search and destroy evolves into much more. As the survival and sanity of the soldiers is threatened by the growing horrors around them. The main inspirations for this roleplay are classic Vietnam films such as Apocalypse Now and Platoon as well non Vietnam War centered miniseries like Band of Brothers and the Pacific. Psychedelic music will be weaved into the IC posts to further raise the surrealism of the story. Player suggestions and ideas are more than welcome to make the experience more enjoyable for everyone involved.

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Rules

• 1. Absolutely no god modding, meta gaming or anything of that nature.
• 2. Simply put, don't be a jerk to other players. Your character can be a jackass but OOC wise please play nice. Any OOC disputes will be solved firmly and finally by me.
• 3. This is an advanced level RP which means advanced standards. IC posts should be a few solid paragraphs long, when in doubt quality > length.
• 4. Every character is a normal human being which means death is a possibility. I won't be going out of my way murdering PCs left and right but its more if your character does something stupid expect repercussions. For example trying to take on two dozen enemy soldiers solo is an ideal way to have your character killed.
• 5. Suggestions and ideas are always welcome.
• 6. If you lose interest please let me know. It happens. Perhaps I can use it as feedback or try to change it to keep you interested. Likewise, if you apply but are not accepted do not give up hope. If someone drops I very well might message you and try to get your character in.
• 7. This ain't going to be a rapid moving RP, as I am a busy man irl (as well as other RP wise). It's going to be chugging along but have no fear of being left behind.
• 8. GM word is law.

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There will be five spots open for the RP, the fireteam composition will be as follows:

• Squad leader, Staff Sergeant (My character)
• Team leader, Sergeant
• Automatic rifleman armed with an M60
• Grenadier
• Rifleman
• Rifleman

There will be another NPC fireteam which our squad will lose communications with shortly after the start of the RP. Even if your character is not accepted for one role I may still like the character and ask you to convert them to another role. Please post your CS to be judged on the OOC, if you are accepted then I'll ask you to move it to the Characters' tab.

Character Sheet

[center][img]picture here[/img]
[h3]Name here[/h3][/center]

[b]Age:[/b]

[b]Place of Birth:[/b]

[b]Physical Description:[/b]

[b]Squad Role:[/b]

[b]Rank:[/b]

[b]Equipment:[/b]

[b]Skills:[/b]

[b]Flaws:[/b]

[b]Fears:[/b]

[b]Personality:[/b]

[b]Personal History:[/b]

[Maglar]

Duke Graham

Daryl "Duke" Graham

Age: 16 years o

Place of Birth: Goldsboro, North Carolina

Physical Description: 5'11, lean and athletic. He has a hard, serious face and hands calloused from farm work. His body seems designed to run long distances and dig in the dirt.

Squad Role: Rifleman

Rank: Private First Class

Equipment: Standard issue uniform, rifle, and side arm. He has a old 24" machete that he brought from home and a regulation tactical knife he keeps strapped to his thigh. He also has on old compass that was passed down from his great grandfather, who was a slave, and a book of philosophy called The Secret Teachings of All Ages that he carries with him like a Bible.

Skills: He grew up working on a farm so he has a habit of waking up early and working late into the day. He has spent a lot of time with the quiet fields and has become a thoughtful soul, so he likes to think before he speaks or acts, a habit that sometimes makes him appear slow when people expect him to answer quickly. He knows how to navigate using the compass and a map, and he grew up singing Barbershop style with his dad and some of the guys in town. He's was a crack shot with the old bolt action rifle his daddy used to hunt with, and he knows the ins and outs of agriculture.

Flaws: He is young and naïve, he tends to follow more than lead. He has a meek self image and is servile to leadership. Sometimes he gets a hot head and barrels himself into trouble.

Fears: He's afraid of not being good enough, or that something is inherently wrong with him. His mother died when he was 11 and he blames himself. He also thinks his father is a coward and he's afraid that he might be one too.

Personality: Quiet and friendly. He loves to sing, and performing has taken away certain feelings of shyness that come naturally to most people. He believes in America and in the principle of the American dream and will not hesitate to defend his country. He can be angry, but he is not an angry person. People would say he seems intense.

Personal History: Duke comes from a long line of farmers; he grew up on the land that his grandfather was able to procure from their ancestors slave owners, so he feels a deep connection to the property. Growing up on a farm he learned the habit of waking up early and working very hard, but his mother insisted on raising him with a strong focus on education, so he learned to love to read. His favorite book is an old book of philosophy that he "borrowed" from the local library of his home town. Studying philosophy is how he learned how to think and to become his own man.

When he was 11 his mother was lynched by a group of Klu Klux Klan members as she was walking home from her job as a school teacher. Duke was furious, and terrified. His father wouldn't do anything about it and refused to discuss it other than to say, "ain't nothing we can do boy, we is born the way we is born, and they was born the way they was born. It's the natural way a' things, the strong eat the weak."

When he turned 14 his father moved to New York and remarried, but Duke stayed behind, intent on trying to keep the farm. When the situation became hopeless and he knew the bank was going to take his property, he figured out how to falsify his birth records to show he was born in 1949 instead of 1953; that was how he was able to get into the military. He figured that through the military he could make a new life for himself, and he wants to make America the beautiful and free place that he imagines it was supposed to be.

He excelled in training because of his hard work, focus, and fitness. They brought him over to Vietnam six months ago and he's been working patrol duty in Hanoi. He just got reassigned to a new squad and was about to see some real action. He's not to keen on killing people, but if it serves the greater good he's willing to do whatever it takes.

[Edie]

Andrew Komesu

Andrew Komesu

Age: 24

Place of Birth: Oahu, Hawaii

Physical Description: A lean fit guy, with an Asiatic appearance, tanned skin, standing around 5'7'', and weighing 134 pounds. Has Black short hair, and monolid brown eyes.

Squad Role: Rifleman

Rank: Private First Class

Equipment: M16, Ten 20 Round Magazines, Entrenching Tool, Poncho, Canteens, Purification Tablets, Military Fatigues, Jungle Boots, and M1 Helmet.

Skills: Worked in a Motorboat/Canoe Service in Oahu, Hawaii. In depth knowledge of engines and electrical equipment.

Flaws: Hardheaded and stubborn when he's into something, hard to deter off his path if he gets going. Even if he's doing something wrong he persists on the path until someone more stubborn than him corrects him.

Fears: Afraid of old folktale monsters his family used to tell him, superstitious about the natural world and takes heed of events that happen.

Personality: A general happy, joyful attitude, and tries to keep a cool persona even during trying times. His hard headedness keeps him motivated and determined though it can be a drawback.

Personal History: Andrew Komesu was born from Okinawan parents, he leans more into his Okinawan culture, learning Japanese and listening to a lot of stories from his mother. When going through school in Hawaii, he blended in well with the others, learning English through school and Japanese at home, he quickly became dual linguistic. Though he knew two languages, he kept Japanese at home and English in public, often helping his parents with translating documents and such at an early age. When he graduated high school and did one year of community college. Throughout his life in the institutions, was highly uneventful, though he was creative and artistic many put him with the others, an average student. After dropping out of college, he started work as a lifeguard, as well as much of freelance work around the San Diego area. After a couple of years of going around and traveling the valley, he was handed a draft letter to report for induction into the United States Armed Forces. During his boot camp, was the first time he was met with a large amount of prejudice. Though he'd faced it here and there in his life, the unpopular view of the Vietnamese did not help him. Eventually, the slurs and the jokes came naturally to him, he could catch one and send it back, though it was not always kindly received. Often, he kept to himself if he needed too, and now sent on his first tour through Vietnam, he felt wholly unprepared for what was to come.

Tell me if you want anything changed

[Heat]

@Maglar Accepted! Welcome aboard Private. You can post it in the character’s tab.

@Edie If you could expand the personality and backstory a bit more it would be perfect. Let me really get a feel of Andrew and all that he has gone through. While we don’t have a radio operator listed I could easily turn that into one of the riflemen.

[Bronco]

Hey OP, quick question. Would you mind if I claim the grenadier slot? I've got a CS in the works.

[Prizrak]

Would be interested in filling the automatic rifleman position. I'll whip a sheet soon.

[Lady Selune]

Lou Freeman

One pill makes you larger... And one pill makes you small... And the ones that mother gives you... Don't do anything at all...

Louis 'Lou' Freeman

Age: 22

Place of Birth: Chicago, Illinois

Physical Description: Lou is a tall and well-built man, standing at approximately five foot eleven. He's obviously muscular, which assists when moving around his heavier weapon. He keeps himself as clean shaven as possible, and his hair is shaved close for practical reasons.

Squad Role: Automatic Rifleman

Rank: Specialist (E-4)

Equipment:

• M60 General Purpose Machinegun
• Smith and Wesson Model 10 Revolver
• Standard issue tactical knife
• M26 grenades
• A faded picture of six people, Lou included, standing in front of a store
• A deck of playing cards- one of the jokers has a bullet hole through it
• A zippo lighter with 'I KNOW I'M GOING TO HEAVEN, 'CAUSE I'VE ALREADY SERVED IN HELL' engraved on one side, and on the other 'RIP MLK: AIN'T NO CHARLIE CALLED ME A N*****.'

Skills: Equipment maintenance: Lou went to a vocational college as a mechanic, and thus is fairly proficient when it comes to the workings of machines. He knows which screws to tighten, which coils to realign, and what switches to flick to get a radio chattering again, and he's one of the fastest in the battalion at stripping his M60.

Inured: This is Lou's third tour in Vietnam. A lot of what might shake an FNG will bounce off of Lou... Or would do, were it not for a very noticeable flaw of his.

Flaws: Addicted: Lou has turned to drugs hard in his time in 'Nam. Mostly cannabis, but also LSD and Mescaline. Although he's not a smackhead, he's certainly dabbled with harder drugs.

Dismissive: Lou is extremely dismissive towards anyone he regards as an FNG, and for a man on his third tour, that's almost everyone. Firmly believing himself to be the only one that knows how to survive the jungles, he frequently chafes against others, especially those officers that he sees as issuing suicidal orders.

Fears: Lou would like to put up a front of an unshakeable veteran, but the truth of the matter is that he's a wreck, held together by psychoactives, nicotine, and coffee. Being doped up only lets you run a little faster from your problems, not escape them, and every time he sleeps sees him swirl back down a whirlpool of nightmares.

Personality: Lou may be an ox of a man, but it's clear not all the lights are on upstairs. His eyes have a deadened quality to them, and he tends to stare through people rather than at them. His world has become a never-ending haze of gunfire, death and mud, and he's lost more friends than he cares to count. Lou tries not to get too close to anyone else in his squad, knowing that each day could be his (or their) last, and instead looks out for himself first, and follows orders second. Nonetheless, as his helmet attests to, he's not a slack on the combat front, and his M60 has barked out death for more than a dozen Charlies.

Personal History: As a young black man growing up in Chicago, Lou faced many of the same issues that any number of inner city minority kids did. From discriminatory schooling and housing to gang violence, Lou grew up with a family that was desperately trying to claw their way a little further up the social ladder. Doing his homework through the light of a shattered window, he started to harden up- getting into fights, committing petty crimes and shunning his elders, until something changed when the young man ended up talking to members of the NAACP Youth Wing. Realising that he might have a change at enacting real reform, Lou went through a remarkable change himself.

Participating in sit ins, protests and marches, Lou was never going to volunteer for the war. Although as he had grown up his parents had finally managed to land themselves a small store in inner city Chicago, they were hardly rich, and his options to draft dodge were slim to none. He was called to the war in 1967, much to his chagrin, and spent his first tour coming to terms with the hell that was Vietnam. Then, he came back the next year, after he thought he had escaped. Now, he approaches his third tour with quiet, bitter, exhausted resentment. Vietnam is a meatgrinder, and he can't keep escaping the teeth of the machine.

[Bronco]

Richard Barnes “Dicky”

Age: 23

Place of Birth: Miami, Florida

Physical Description: Caucasian male standing around 5' 9" with blue eyes and dirty blonde hair; cut in a fade that grows into a spiking mess at the top. Relatively clean shaven and built moderately when stood next to his peers.

Squad Role: Grenadier

Rank: Private First Class

Equipment: Boonie hat and fatigues, Bandelier across the chest, Fulton Flashlight, M18 smoke grenades (x3 white) (x1 red), E-tool, Purification tablets, Canteen, Small towel, Colt m1911a1, M16, M79 grenade launcher, a green yoyo with Attitude Is Everything engraved on the side with a winking smiley face in the middle.

Skills: Agile, has an eye for ranging distances, has picked up the local language but is shotty at best, not half bad with a yoyo

Flaws: Hard of hearing, has almost zero tact, can be a tad selfish sometimes, and possesses a big mouth.

Fears: Mass amounts of fire, inexperienced officers

Personality: The reasons for his general attitude can be found below, but as far as this section goes, Richard's most prevailing trait is his neutrality on most things. Don't confuse this for acceptance, as he's very quick to point out the problems in most cases. He's blunt with his opinions, and due to certain past experiences, he doesn't care how high a rank hears them. When it comes to procedure he feels the same way, his one goal is to do his job and get home. Now this doesn't mean he'll gun down civilians because one "might" be Vietcong, he's not a broken man that'll cross any line, but if someone tells him to secure an asset that is clearly lost...yeah good luck. The only exception to his policy of self preservation is human life. He will NOT hang out his comrades to dry, not after his first platoon, and conveniently enough he usually has to break protocols to do this.

Furthermore, his stance on the war itself is almost non-existent. Is it good? Is it bad? In Richard's mind it doesn't matter, they're all involved and the only way out is to play the game. Keep in mind though, he's playing the game so that HE wins, not his superiors. Some might accuse him of being unpatriotic or a boot licker, as both sides don't approve of his lack of a stance, but in the end he sees the idea of them being "good" or "bad" as irrelevant. It's just something else to worry about on top of surviving.

Personal History: The Barnes household was split from the get-go, a condition that persisted for as long as Richard could remember. On one side, there was his father, a dive master operating out of a small shop along the Miami shore. He was foiled by the boy's mother, an officer of the law who continually patrolled the city's twilight district. Though it was true that they completed each other, they always seemed to but heads more than most marriages. The onset of the war in '65 didn't help.

Between the two were three brothers, with Richard being the youngest. Both of his brother's were the results of his parent's previous marriages, the oldest from his father's ex-wife and the middle child from his mother's ex-husband. Richard had the "privilege" of being the only child that could call both his parents biological, which also placed him in the center of quite a few family disagreements. For most of his life he was the middle man, as his older brother would side with dad and his middle sibling with mom. Whenever the adults got to criticizing one and other, their "proxies" as Richard liked to call them, would step in and only add to hostilities.

This gave Rich plenty of opportunities to practice the art of moderation, which usually consisted of him being as blunt as possible to both parties involved. In his head the idea was simple, "they'll either all see reason or just rally around being pissed at me," if the result was the ladder, it never lasted for more than a day or two at a time. This was the routine, and it worked surprisingly well, but nothing is ever truly a cure-all. Even before US troops were officially in country, the topic of the conflict in Vietnam strained his parent's marriage immensely.

At the end of the day, the debate was more a clash of lifestyles and ideology than anything else. Mr. and Mrs. Barnes couldn't have been more different in that regard. "Thank god college was right around the corner," was all Richard could say, as it seemed his usual style of diffusing hostilities just wasn't working. Thankfully the "proxies" were too occupied to weigh in, as Rich's older brother enlisted in the Marines right after high school and the middle one went to study nursing. It seemed Richard was all that was left between his mom and dad...until one fateful day.

Death has a funny way of shuffling one's priorities and whether through a mixture of desiring vengeance, wanting to end the war, or simply seeing an out the US government lost one Barnes brother and gained another. Leaving a confused set of parents behind, Richard was trained and soon found himself in Southeast Asia. He quickly learned the attitude of his platoon, and was surprisingly relieved. There was no more room to slug it out over the politics, they were in country and the only way back was to do their jobs. Instead, the bickering focused on more universally agreeable topics, like why the contents of the heads had to be burned so close to their tents. It seemed that no matter the background or ideology of the individual, most slid right into the established mind set. Being apart of a united group was new to Rich, and he soon found himself missing home less and less.

He should have learned his lesson the first time, because fate quickly reminded him that nothing lasts forever. It was a simple mission, search and destroy enemy caches within a set of villages. Unfortunately, the brass never counted on insurgents coming to retrieve they're supplies on the same day as the operation. What was meant to be a relatively unopposed search and seizure became into an extended firefight. Locked in a stalemate, air was requested, a godsend if the lieutenant coordinating the strike had known his distances better. Long story short, no fire is friendly. With the platoon practically wiped, Richard was circulated into his current unit.

[Maglar]

If I may say, these are beautiful. Y'all really knockef some character creation out of the park

[Edie]

I agree, I've been a bit lackluster with my backstory, I'll try and think up more interesting things to add.

[Heat]

Everyone is looking good! I’ll do some reviews Sunday night. I unfortunately cut my hand pretty gnarly at work today but it shouldn’t slow me down too much.

But if we get a flood of applicants then I might have to slow down the process and do like a first then final reviews system.

[Bronco]

Ooof, hope it heals alright op.

[Heat]

I’m chugging through my own character’s CS basically one handed. I will finish it monday then commence sheet reviews!

[Heat]

@Lady Selune Lou is an interesting character, he should have an intriguing rapport with John. Both men being on their third tour of duty. Accepted! Our Automatic Rifleman slot has been filled.

@Bronco Also accepted! We got our explosives guy.

For those keeping track we still need a Team leader as well as another rifleman. I am considering adding another rifleman slot due to higher interest than expected. For those who were seeking a role which has been filled have no fear, you're more than welcome to adjust your CS to an available role and apply for one of those. My own CS for our staff sergeant has also been finished.

If things continue to go swimmingly then the IC may be up this weekend, latest being next tuesday.

[Lady Selune]

@Heat

Woo! Definitely one of the Fortunate Ones here :)

[Mixtape Ghost N]

I'm gonna drop the RP, I was working on a sheet and ended up having to change his role twice and just lost interest I guess.

[Heat]

@The Ghost Note well I appreciate you letting me know. Good luck with everything!

[Heat]

@Edie how are the sheet revisions coming?

[Lady Selune]

I have discovered a genuinely fantastic fact. During the Vietnam War, US Army Intelligence made a tape of spooky ghost noises to try to scare VC.

[Bronco]

Ah yes, operation Wandering Soul