Chapter One: The South
STATUS: Now Casting
Welcome to chapter one of From the Ashes. This Game of Thrones game will pick up 13 years from the end of the HBO series (for the sake of simplicity, we will be using the show cannon and not the book). Bran the Broken sits upon the throne, but even with the three eyed raven and his visions, Westeros still finds a way to get themselves into trouble. With civil war brewing in Dorne, Stormlands licking their wounds, and King's Landing still rebuilding the ruins left from the War of the Queens, everything our favorite characters fought for now finds itself threatened to unravel.
We will be starting with a focus on mostly Dorne (as civil war is a-brewin'), Stormlands (which will eventually play the next big part in our story), and King's Landing. These stories will eventually flow into Chapter 2, which will move our story further north....
While I do encourage you to pick a main character (so that we have a main cast of characters to follow), you are allowed to have other minor characters if you wish to help flesh out the story. BUT, don't get attached. In true GOT style, no character is safe from death. DUN DUN DUN. Because of this, I may be PMing you your death ahead of time so that you can write up something fantastic or do a co-op post with another player or myself.
So... if you are still reading, you are likely still interested! Great! I do have a general list of characters we need (Don't worry about how many there are... any that are not filled will be NPCed), but you are welcome to submit a character of your own making, as well. The list also includes cannon characters. I will be requiring role play samples for any major cannon roles to ensure you understand their cannon personality... otherwise, just the typical posting OOC Character Sheet application will happen for all other characters.
For now, most of our story will take place in Dorne and in the Stormlands, so if your character is from other regions in Westeros (or gods forbid, Essos!), please reach out to me first so we can discuss anything you would need to know about those regions as well as make sure you have a good reason to be in the scope of our story.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
**NOTES: Main characters are highlighted in colors (except small council... all of them are main characters). Please fill these first. You can also make up female characters throughout various houses in each region. Please make sure you understand Dornish culture well before you play a Dornish character (PM me if you have questions).
King's Landing
Bran the Broken, King of Westeros---GM NPC
Ser Davos Seaworth, Master of Ships, Lord of the Rainwood--*Cannon character, PM for details on Rainwood lands* OPEN
Tyrion Lannister, Hand of the King--*Cannon Character* OPEN
Unnamed Lord, Master of Coin--*Newly appointed after death of Bronn* OPEN
Unnamed Lord, Master of Law-- OPEN
Lord Gulian Qorgyle, Master of War, Lord of Sandstone--SEE DORNE
Ser Brienne of Tarth, Lady Commander of the Kingsguard--*Cannon Character, PM me before applying* OPEN
Stormlands
Gendry Baratheon, Lord Paramount & Lord of Storm's End---*Cannon Character* OPEN
Unnamed Lord Fell (young)--Open
Unnamed Lord Swann (young)--Open
Unnamed Lord Wylde (mature adult)--Open
Unnamed daughter of Lord Wylde (young adult)--Open
Unnamed Lord Mertyns--Open
Unnamed Lord Dondarrion (young)--Open
Unnamed Lord Prenrose--OPEN
The Bandit King--*PM ME* Open
Dorne
Prince Doran Nymeros Martell (born Doran Sand), [i]Prince of Dorne[/b]--*Cannon, PM me* OPEN
Moriah Martell 'nee Manwoody (13)-- *PM me before applying* OPEN
Unnamed lady of Uller (11-14), Lady in Waiting to Moriah, OPEN
Unnamed lady of Blackmont (11-14), Lady in Waiting to Moriah, OPEN
Unnamed lady of Dalt) (11-14), Lady in Waiting to Moriah, OPEN
Unnamed Lord Uller (Mature Adult)-- OPEN
Unnamed Lord/Lady Blackmont (Mature Adult)--OPEN
Unnamed Lord/Lady Wyl--OPEN
Unnamed Lord/Lady Dayne
Unnamed Lord Fowler (Mature Adult)-- OPEN
Gulian Qorgyle, Lord of Sandstone, Master of War--LeiaHair
Ser Arron Qorgyle, Brother of Lord Gulian--OPEN
Lady Sybilla Qorgyle (12), Heir to Sandstone--LeiaHair
Lord Manwoody (Mature Adult)--OPEN **PM me before applying**
Unnamed eldest son of Manwoody (20+)--OPEN
Unnamed second son of Manwoody (18+)--OPEN
Unnamed Lord/Lady Toland--OPEN **PM Me**
Unnamed Lord/Lady Jordayne--OPEN
Unnamed Lord/Lady Vaith--OPEN
Unnamed Lord/Lady Yronwood--OPEN *PM me*
The Past 13 years...
**Note: The show ends in the year 305 AC.
DORNE
Rebirth of House Martell
305-309 AC
305-309 AC
Prince Doran Nymeros Martell (born Doran Sand), a bastard of a distant cousin to the late Prince Doran (and, incidentally, a cousin to Ellaria Sand), sits as a member for The Great Council after having been summoned as closest blood relative of the nearly extinct Martell line. Shortly after the coronation of Bran the Broken, the King legitimizes Doran, dubbing him Doran Nymeros Martell, Prince of Dorne and Lord of Sunspear.
At first, Prince Doran is fairly well received, having been known as a great warrior from his leadership in the Dornish Forces sent to support Daenerys Targaryen in the War of the Queens and his relation to Ellaria Sand. It was speculated that her plans after the war were to marry one of her daughters to Doran Sand to revive a ruling Martell line.
The year following, Princess Belandra Martell née Uller, Prince Doran’s wife of several years, dies. The servants of Sunspear are quick to whisper about how the woman was found strangled in her bed despite the official word being that she had hung herself after having lost a child earlier in the year. It was a well known fact that Prince Doran did not want his wife taking a Paramour until after their line was secure so as to ensure the child was a trueborn Martell… however, the strong willed Uller wife refused to heed his wishes and had become with child in 305 while her husband had been in King’s Landing. This only caused the rumors to fly even more. But, with a suicide note in written in what was claimed to be her own hand, it was hard to legitimize the claims. Moving quickly to solidify his line, Prince Doran Nymeros Martell marries Arianne Blackmont.
When Ravens Fly
310-318 AC
310-318 AC
Arianne Martell née Blackmont dies childless from what is claimed to be natural causes. The rumor mill, of course, claimed it to be poison, however, this was never proven. After almost a year following Arianne’s death, Prince Doran takes another wife, Allyria Dayne. Allyria was the widow of Trystane Fowler (the seventh son of the standing Lord Fowler) and had four children of her own prior to their marriage. Many in Dorne were hopeful that this fertile 24 year old bride would bring a new Martell child into the world.
Late in 313 AC, Ravens seem to dominate the talk on the street. Early in the year, ravens from King’s Landing announce the passing of Lord Royce, Master of War. Prince Doran travels to the capital to pay his respect and, as many Lords in the realm, try to leverage some favor. Bran the Broken does, in fact, bestow a great deal of favor upon Dorne… but not to House Martell. Gulian Qorgyle, Lord of Sandstone, is named Master of War for his command of Martell forces through the War of the Queens and the Great War. His continual support of the realm and efforts to help arm Westrosi Knights of all regions with Sand Steeds from Sandstone were only a few of the deeds having brought the Martell banner into the limelight of King’s Landing. The Qorgyle lord, his wife, and younger children move to King’s Landing, leaving Sandstone in the hands of his eldest daughter, 12 year old Sybilla, and his brother, Ser Arron Qorgyle…. Just in time for the white ravens of winter to be released from the Citadel.
All seems calm during the 6 month winter… that is, until yet another one of the Prince’s wives dies. Allyria Martell née Dayne is found dead, her body found in the water gardens bruised and bloodied. The blame starts pointing all over, but no voices are as loud as those who blame Prince Doran, who had been in King’s Landing in the time surrounding his wife’s death. A year later, the widower Prince takes yet another wife, 13 year old Moriah Manwoody. Although he never says it outloud, it is his hope that by taking a young bride that she will be able to give him an heir.
THE STORMLANDS
After the Ash Settles
305-318 AC
305-318 AC
With the new King on the throne, Gendry Baratheon sails for Storm’s End… to halls he had never wandered before. Calling what remained of the banners, Gendry took stock of each man before him. Some of the faces were familiar from the battlefields while others had barely seen the first few years of adulthood, their Lordly fathers slain in the Great War or the War of the Queens. Yet, all faces looked to him for hope.
Acting quickly to ensure the stabilization of the Stormlands, Gendry (with the help of his grandmother, Lady Cassana Baratheon, and Ser Davos in King’s Landing) brokers a deal with the Crown to supply them with the initial supply of wood so that they might begin to rebuild the Royal Fleet and start construction in the capital. In return, the crown would pay an inflated price for the first few shipments should they arrive within the timeframe agreed upon. Relying heavily on Lords Fell and Cafferen in the Kingswood and Lords Seaworth, Swann, and Whitehead in the Rainwoods, Gendry was able to meet demands. Lord Mertyns and Lord Wylde both contributed as well, however with great pain. Both houses had to rebuild after being invaded by the Golden Company and were reluctant to accept. Lord Mertyns was able to barter a better deal for his logs and Lord Wylde refused to help unless Gendry married his eldest daughter. Starting the next year off with a marriage, a child on it’s way, and a large shipment of wood to the Capital, Gendry feels confident in his ability to rule… as do the Stormland Lords, their coffers filling with gold with every shipment North. With this confidence, the Baratheon Lord moves to rebuild their own fleet, slowly tapering off their support Northward as other regions begin to lend their support to the crown.
The Stormlands would quietly prosper for nearly eleven more years (and four more Baratheon children) giving the region false hope for a better future... for chaos was on it's way...
Rules & Gameplay
This game will be story driven and every action will have a reaction... sometimes good, sometimes bad. Remember, Game of Thrones is a cut-throat game of politics that can get one killed even for implications of doing something wrong.
Character Deaths
1. Writers must communicate and agree outside of the game.
2. If two writers cannot come to an agreement, but there has been logical plotting and writing over a long series of posts, the GM has the right to assign a decision about the character death.
3. Once the decision has been made and the attacker writes their post with the action, if the victim comes up with a logical way out (discussed in OOC/PM prior to posting), then the GM has a right to rescind the initial decision of character death.
4. If a logical way out has not been found, the victim's writer can request a roll of the dice. The GM will set the terms based off the likeliness and logical outcomes with the RP (i.e. all odds 5 and above are death, all odds below 5 are severe injuries, and all evens are misses) and a roll from a random number generator will be made.
NOTE: A character death does not mean you can't continue to play!! This is Game of Thrones. It is such a rich world that I intend to explore that there will be many, many awesome storylines and characters for us to create and explore! Just like with Eddard Stark dying in the first book.... it really set everything into motion, but tore at our heartstrings because we were so invested in him as a Character.... and that is okay! THat is good writing, and we can achieve that, too!
Battles, Duels, and other types of attacks
If you send your character onto the battle field, pick a fight with someone, or willingly join a duel, please know that you are then consenting to your character possibly dying. There will be IC consequences for IC actions, and some of those could end up on the pointy end of a sword... If you go into battle with an expected injury or death, I will honor that... if you go in expecting to be unscathed, just know that we will be having a fun little dice party to see what exactly happens.
Non-battle/duel conflicts (like rape, which happened in the books/show, sorry folks... it's a dark tale) will be treated like the items in the 'deaths' section in which if there is a logical reason for the attacker to do it, they will be able to. HOWEVER, that being said, anything sexual in nature will need to follow the site's rules. Allude to it or fade to black... details can be hashed out in PMs between writers IF YOU CHOOSE, but we cannot go too far into those weeds on the public side of things. Also be respectful of your fellow RPers. If someone chooses not to RP a scene (death or otherwise) in private, that is their right. I will not tolerate any sort of pressure or harassment in regards to this. Consider this your first and only warning.
Sexual Content and Gore
If you have read the books or watch the show, you know that there is a LOT of sexual content. Per the site's rules, we cannot be too heavy handed on this. We will also be having characters who are under 18. Like in our medieval history, there were child brides. To avoid any questionable situations, including any underage marriages (i.e. the Prince Doran is married to a 13 year old Manwoody), there will be no sexual content what so ever if a character under 18 is involved. Fade to black even earlier than you would a normal scene.
If your character visits a whore house, please be tasteful in what you narrate and no underage characters allowed to RP in a whore house. I just want to avoid anything questionable.
When it comes to death, killing people or NPCs, please be conscience of the site's rule on being too intense. If you want a second opinion before posting, hit me up! I am happy to give you my thoughts. Better to be safe than sorry.
CHARACTER ACTIONS = CHARACTER CONSEQUENCES
So above you read that you can kill people, rape people, get in a fight.... etc. You can also insult NPCs or steal things... but just know, even NPCs will react logically. Don't forget your bannermen! Don't forget your people in your charge! And beware of picking a fight with the wrong person, you could end up dead.
My last rule...
This is supposed to be fun and this is about the story, not us players or our specific characters. I am fairly chill, but I will not allow drama to fester. I will give people one chance to figure it out, but if drama or issues arise and even after being corrected they continue, you will be done. As GM I have the right to remove any players who are not being respectful OOCly of the rules or of their fellow writers. We are doing this as a team!
GAME PLAY
While I have a general story in mind, nothing is set in stone. As GM, I am here to spark a story and keep the flames going... I am not here to write it all... and what YOU write does have an effect on where this story heads.
Because players may have multiple characters, I will be requiring the following format for all IC posts.
Example:
Lord Adrastos Stark, King of the North---- notice bold
LOCATION: Winterfell ---notice italics
(Insert your post in the body here.)
(Insert any tags for writers who may need to respond to the specific post.)
(Put a horizontal rule here (HR) before writing for another character.)
If you are writing with your character and using a named NPC, you will need to title your post like this instead:
Lord Adrastos Stark, King of the North; Ser Jas Dalt (NPC)
NPC usage
I will be keeping a master list of named and reoccurring NPCs. I would prefer to use them myself, but I am okay with you all moving them as you need to... just make sure you read previous posts with them to understand the general feeling for that NPC. However, I will be using them to help interact with you all and keep our story moving. You cannot kill or harm a NPC without asking me first. [/hider]
It is my intention to start no later than June 15, but I will continue to take applications after this date as well.
