[OOC] Broken Empire (Asian/Wuxia/Martial Arts Roleplay)

[TJByrum]

Broken Empire

Setting
This roleplay takes place in the mystical land of Kin Sun. Kin Sun resembles Ancient China and Japan. The people who live here are kians, who resemble the Chinese/Japanese/Koreans. Kin Sun's geography changes depending on where you are; it has lush, humid, jungles, as well as rich, fertile, river valleys; there are ice-capped mountains which touch the skies, and swampy marshes that house dark creatures. Far to the west is the Great Desert, to the east is an ocean, to the north are steppes, and to the south is a thick jungle. This is very similar to how a major city looks. Names, society, architecture, culture, weapons, folklore, and more are all inspired by Chinese and Japanese influences.
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Story

Background

This particular roleplay takes place in the Ancient Era of Kin Sun. For a long time there were many small and petty kingdoms fighting over the land. These wars eventually became increasingly destructive, sparking the Warring States period. Many warlords had risen and fallen during this period, whole armies clashed, and tens of thousands of kians were killed. In an unnamed village there lived three young men: Kang Xu, Shu Liang, and Wu Zhou. When the tides of war washed over their village, the three friends made a pact to one another that one day they would end the chaos. They raised a small force, but there ambitious passion and goodwill caused refugees to flock to their ranks and their army became a formidable force. Together, the three friends defeated their rivals, united the provinces, and established the Imperial Empire. As per their pact, Shu Liang became the First Emperor. Kang Xu was given command of the military forces and was tasked with defending the land from internal and external threats. Wu Zhou became Shu Liang's personal bodyguard and closest adviser.

Five years of peace passed after the Imperial Empire was established and the people prospered. Kang Xu, however, had become radically different. He demanded more funds, a larger army, and imposed martial law in much of the land. Wu Zhou and Shu Liang became increasingly worried and so decided to relieve Kang of his duties. An outraged Kang then attempted to abdicate the throne from one of his oldest friends. Kang led a force of his most elite soldiers into the Imperial Palace, slaughtering all who attempted to stop him. When Kang reached the throne room only one man stood in his way: Wu Zhou. The two friends fought each other in a duel that ended atop the Golden Bridge. Wu Zhou reluctantly impaled his dear friend through the heart with a sword; Kang Xu's lifeless body toppled off the side of the Golden Bridge and into the bottomless lake below, bringing the abdication to an end. Shu Liang and Wu Zhou decided to disband Kang's large army, for it disrupted the balance of power within the Empire. Shu Liang then tasked Wu Zhou with replacing Kang's forces with a smaller, more loyal organization. Wu's solution was the Dragonguard.

Wu had the ancient Dragon's Peak Temple rebuilt and renovated. He then recruited some of the finest martial artists in the land and they became the first Dragonguard. For the next thirty years students from far and wide would travel to Dragon's Peak Temple seeking training and wisdom. A select few became part of the Dragonguard, and the academy became renowned for producing some of the greatest martial artists the world had ever seen. The Dragonguard proved to be a huge success, quelling any sort of uprising, settling any disputes, and using their profound wisdom to calm their foreign neighbors.

You are a student here at Dragon's Peak Temple, and you have come here to train under Master Wu for whatever reason (not all who come here wish to be in the Dragonguard). The roleplay will begin here at the temple, but will quickly move away as you embark on a vital quest around Kin Sun that could mean the difference between the survival of the Imperial Empire or its destruction.
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Bios
(Note: Just put a single '[' at the beginning of each category to make it bold)

Bio Format

b]Name:[b] (Remember, this is an Asian-inspired roleplay, so Asian-inspired names are a must)
b]Age:[b] (Preferably ages 17 and up)
b]Gender:[b]
b]Appearance:[b] (Remember, the kians resemble the Japanese/Chinese/Koreans)

b]Belongings:[b] (Any sort of belongings you brought with you to the academy)
b]Martial Art Style:[b] (Name your style, explain its history, and purpose. Is it fierce and fast like tiger? Or calm and fluid like a stream of water? Or is strong and hard like a bear? Does it rely on blocks and counters, or does it rely on agility and evasion?)
b]Chi Abilities:[b] (Chi is the equivalent of magic in the sense that it can augment ones abilities, control the elements, heal, and empower individuals)

b]Personality:[b]
b]History:[b] (The Warring States period ended 35 years ago; the Empire was established 35 years ago; Kang's Treachery occurred 30 years ago)

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Characters

Characters

Zhen Ji - TJByrum - 23 year old Female, Hidden Lotus style
Rin - Kalas - 19 year old Male, Muay Boran style
Song Moon-sik - Fabricant451 - 21 year old Female, Daenseu style
Angelo Lee - Jangel13 - 19 year old Male, Shanxi Preying Mantis style
Huan Baijiu - Raineh Daze - 27 year old Female, Drunken Fist style

Hei Ganglong - Dblade26 - 12 year old Male, Dark Storm style - Pending

Emperor Shu Liang - The sixty-one year old emperor of the Imperial Empire. Over thiry-five years ago he and his friends helped unite the land under a single banner: the Imperial Empire. Shu Liang has always been a good, peaceful, man, if a bit naive. He is loved both inside and outside the Empire.
Master Wu - Wu Zhou helped his friend, Shu Liang, unite the land many years ago. He is now sixty-two years old and is the headmaster of Dragon's Peak Temple; he has personally trained the entire Dragonguard. Although old, he is extremely wise and very capable. In all respects, Wu Zhou would have been the ideal emperor of the Imperial Empire.
Kang Xu - Kang Xu helped his friend Shu Liang unite the land under the Imperial Empire. He was the top military commander, but he led a small rebellion that resulted in his death at the hands of Wu Zhou.

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Terms

Click to show

Kin Sun - Name of the land the RP takes place in; resembles China and Japan, homeland of the kian. There are rivers, lakes, forests, mountains, swamps, jungles, and more. The architecture and culture of the civilization here is very similar to East Asia.
Kians - Race of men and women who live in Kin Sun; resembles Eastern Asian people.
Warring States Period - Before the Empire was formed, the provinces of Kin Sun waged war with one another. The bloodiest of these conflicts was the Warring States Period. Fortunately, Wu Zhou, Kang Xu, and Shu Liang united the land and established the Imperial Empire.
Imperial Empire - The governing body of Kin Sun, currently ruled by Emperor Shu Liang after he and his friends united the land. The military was disbanded thirty years ago and has been protected by the Dragonguard ever since.
Dragon's Peak Temple - An ancient temple rebuilt by Wu Zhou; men and women from all around come here to train, and some even become part of the Dragonguard. Wu Zhou is the current master of the temple and personally trains many of the students. It produces some of the finest martial artists the land has ever seen.
Dragonguard - The Dragonguard is an exclusive order trained and handpicked by Master Wu himself; they are expert martial artists who act as a policing force in Kin Sun. They are often referred to as 'the Dragons' or 'the Dragonguards'. They are wise, experienced, skill martial artists who quell any rebellious acts, calm foreign nations, and keep the Empire in order.
Imperial City - Capital of Kin Sun, also where the Imperial Palace is located. It is a large city with high stone walls set in a beautiful and lush river valley. The Imperial Palace is located at its highest point and is a rather large castle, inset in the side of Dragon's Peak Mountain. A large golden arch extends from the side of the palace and stretches over a bottomless lake and waterfalls known as the Golden Bridge.
Chi - Takes the form of magic; meditation builds up Chi, and Chi can be used to empower ones self, gives someone the ability to heal, transform, and control the elements.

[Jangel13]

I'll join but can I make the request that I be a Bastard of a Hispanic trader and my mother was a wood cutter?

[Kalas]

Rin



Age
19

Gender
Male

Belongings
-A Tengu Mask (As seen above)
-His Pet Raven (Named Karasu)
-Two Wakizashi Blades
-A Small Gourd of Water

Martial Arts Style
- Muay Boran: A style that is known as the more traditional, yet more violent, form of Muay Thai. This style, much-like its predecessor form, focuses heavily on hard, punching strikes and even harder kicks to vital areas or key points to overcome the human body. It also incorporates the use of devastating elbows strikes, usually to the facial area, and bone-breaking knees to the torso as well. In terms of defence, a Muay Boran practitioner tends to take most attacks in his stride, often striking as their opponents attack to prevent them from landing a hit and hurting them in the process. An example of this would be defending against a knee-strike by elbowing down against the thigh area or just behind the knee-cap. Overall, Muay Boran is a precise, yet devastating, fighting style. Though it may not allow for a wide range of maneuverability on the battle field, up close, it is fast and powerful.

- Kanpekina Nito: Nito-Ichi is a Kenjutsu style typically known for the use of a katana blade and wakizashi blade combination. Rin's style is a derivative form of that style but instead uses two wakizashi blades. It is known as Kanpekina Nito, which literally means 'Perfect Two-Sword'. The reason being is that Kanpekina does not rely on the main use of the katana with the support of the wakizashi. With Nito-Ichi, if your katana is disarmed then you are severely hindered in your fighting capabilities since your are only taught how to utilize the wakizashi as a support blade. Kanpekina, however, disciplines you to learn how to use a wakizashi blade as the main weapon, so if one of your blades are lost, you still can use the other to its' full effect. This style introduces the ability to perform lightning fast strikes with heavy power behind each attack, due to the blade's shortness. The use of two blades allows the wielder to get inside their opponents guard much easier and unleash deadly strikes towards vital positions. Usually, the dual wakizashi are reinforced to account for the extra use and weight of the attacks being used. Finally, the maneuvers taught to Kanpekina practitioners allow them to maintain both short and long guards at the same time, easily keeping up with, if not surpassing, the original katana/wakizashi combo.

Chi Abilities
- Lord of the Doom Fist Style (Kyouken Ou): The name of this ability was given to Rin by the people of his village, though he usually just shortens it to Doom Fist. This ability allows Rin to imbue his body with Chi resulting in his attacks becoming highly dangerous. Each attack that lands causes several micro cuts that eat away at the struck area, almost like acid. The cuts are due to the sharp nature of his Chi Energy. Rin is currently learning how to focus his Chi at certain specific points of his body to enable even more devastating attacks.

-[NOT YET LEARNT] Piercing Fang of Divine Strength (Senga Jinkei): A technique that Rin hopes to become his ultimate technique. By using extraordinary Chi Energy control, he focuses all his Chi into his needle-like fingertip. Doing so creates a highly destructive technique that allows Rin to thrust his arm through someone's body while also removing their heart. This technique requires a very high amount of concentration and precision. If this attack misses, Rin may become susceptible to exhaustion during a prolonged battle due to the sheer amount of Chi Energy and Chi control required to perform this technique.

Personality
Rin is quite focused. He has clear goals and is quite determined to achieve them. He takes his training seriously and aspires to become the best in his field. Where people are concerned, Rin doesn't shy away from interaction, though he doesn't generally go looking for it either. While, at times, he may prefer to keep himself secluded from everyone else, he always makes sure to join in on missions and objectives. If he has a particular opinion about something, he is more inclined to say it out loud, rather than keep quiet about it. Although not in a way that would seem brash and arrogant but more in an aloof or distant way. He is loyal to his beliefs, in that he will defend them if questioned but not so extreme as to rear up in anger about them. Ever the calm and collected one, Rin prefers to keep a cool head during times of stress.

History
Rin was born and raised in a village called Unabara, also known as Oni no Sou (The Demon's Haunt). It is renowned for its Muay Boran-style of Martial Arts as well as the Nito-Ichi-style of Kenjutsu (Swordsmanship). He lived here with just his Mother and Father as an only child. Growing up, he practiced the Muay Boran-style along with every other kid in his village. It was as if the village were preparing to send them to battle. However, Unabara was known to be blessed with rich and arable lands, perfect for growing crops, which always provided excellent harvests. Many other villages and bandits envied Unabara's fortunes and tried to occupy the village by force. But the village survived many attacks due to the people's belief in their fortune from the gods, however, they lost many lives and even more seasons-worth of crops to the constant raids. Then, as if rewarded by the mighty powers themselves, a single, young man, roughly the age of 18, came to the village. He went solely by the name of Tosen and after hearing of the repeated attacks, he offered to defend the village on his own. The villagers agreed, though they were highly skeptical about whether his claim would bare any truth.

When the next group of raiders came, Tosen challenged each of them to single combat. Stating that if they could slay him, then they would be able to kill each of the villagers freely and completely occupy the village. Outraged at his offer, the villagers nearly slew Tosen themselves, but he persisted and promised that no harm would come to them. The raiders took up his offer and, one-by-one, the men fell to his dual blades and a strange form of Martial Arts until eventually none stood. The villagers were in disbelief but hailed Tosen as a hero and offered him a place to live within the village. In return, Tosen taught the people Muay Boran and Nito-Ichi, the styles he had used to defeat the raiders. Word spread of this lone man's victory and more came to attack the village. However, this time Tosen lead his students into battle against them, refusing to offer any of them single-combat. They prevailed and grew with each battle, until eventually no more raiders would come. News had traveled far about the village of Unabara and soon became known as The Demon's Haunt; related to the fact that Tosen was now being hailed as The Demon Swordsman. Two years after he'd first arrived at the village, Tosen was married and a new father. Although he was barely 20, Tosen's mysterious past had matured him much earlier then most other boys. His young wife gave birth you a healthy boy, who he named Rin.

For the past 19 years, Rin never left the village of Unabara; Being forced to stay within its' boundaries and learn the ways of Muay Boran and Nito-Ichi. His father always refused to talk about his past, stating that "One day, the time will come for you to know, but not today." Rin grew strong and practiced his styles fervently, excelling far beyond the other children of his age. It was soon after his 18th birthday, however, where everything changed. During an intense sparring session with his father, Rin began showing signs of heightened emotion. He wasn't sure why, but he felt angrier the longer the fight went on. His father, Tosen, would not stop the fight, however, demanding that he learnt to control his emotions in battle. But this proved to be worthless, Rin was only growing more distressed. Until eventually something snapped. Rin, foregoing any of his practiced stances or attacks he'd learnt all his life, struck Tosen with a single devastating punch to the chest. Tosen was sent sprawling back, clutching where he'd been hit as blood spilled.

Fortunately, Tosen survived the attack but was left weakened and unconscious by several micro cuts that had eaten into his flesh where he'd been punched and the loss of blood. It was a village elder that explained to Rin that he had had unlocked his Chi Energy. Shocked and confused, Rin waited for his father to wake up so that he could ask him what to do. When Tosen eventually came around, he consoled his son, assuring him that it was completely natural to have Chi Energy. It was then that Tosen explained to his son where he had come from, how his own father had been killed by his best friend and that he was left to be raised by Wu Zhou; The Emperor's personal bodyguard, Grand-master of the Dragon's Peak Temple and Commander of the Dragonguard. Tosen then told Rin that he must travel to Dragon's Peak so that he could develop his Chi Ability under Wu Zhou's tutelage and further perfect his fighting styles. Finally, he told Rin his last name, which also served as Rin's own last name, but he made him swear to keep it a secret. He was not to tell anybody, no matter what.

With a heavy heart and his path set out in front of him, Rin left the village of Unabara. He had so many questions for his father but none that could be answered simply. He focused on meeting Wu Zhou and training at the Dragon's Peak Temple. For the past year he has been training at the Temple, he has gained a decent grasp of his Chi Ability but still has far to go before he masters it. Alongside that, the questions from before still burn deep within his mind.

[Jangel13]

I got class but I'll post afterwards

[Rin]

Kalas said
Rin

Well, that won't get confusing. XD

Anyways, still very interested. Just need to write up my character, which... Hopefully won't take too long. ^^;

[Fabricant451]

Gonna get to work work on my character character

[Kalas]

Rin said
Well, that won't get confusing. XD

Ahaa! I can change it if you'd like?

[Rin]

Nah, it's fine. Just found it a little amusing is all. XD

[TJByrum]

@Jangel13: As long as your mother is of kian descent that would be absolutely fine.

@Kalas: I've read and replied to your PM, but so far Rin's age seems appropriate for the matter in question; I'll just have to see a history. And Muay Boran is exactly the type of description I was looking for.

@Everyone: I'll be honest; I typed up the OOC pretty fast so I could go catch a bite to eat (no, I didn't eat any sort of Asian food) and I'll probably be altering a few things (minor things though).

[TJByrum]

Name: Jen Zi, 'the Hidden Lotus'
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Appearance:

Belongings: Emerald Necklace
Martial Art Style: Hidden Lotus
Chi Abilities:

Personality:
History:

[Gargoyle]

I'll just reserve this post for my CS if that's fine :P

[Fabricant451]

Name: Song Moon-sik. Goes by Moon.

Age: 21

Gender: Female




Belongings: - A hyang-bipa, a pear shaped stringed instrument. Bipa

-A daegeum, a bamboo flute with a unique timbre. Daegeum

-A small carrying jug attached to the hip filled with beverages. Frequently soju.

Martial Art Style: She calls it Daenseu. It is the style known as Taekkyeon. Taekkyeon uses the whole body in its techniques and motions, but teaches and focuses on several kick varieties, such as low kicks, knee kicks, jump kicks, and sweeps. The movements of Taekkyon are fluid with the practitioners constantly moving. One of its most striking characteristics is a constant bending and stretching of one's knees, giving the art a dance-like appearance. Taekkyeon uses a lot of high, medium and low kicks. Sweeps with straight forward low kicks using the ball of the foot and the heel and flowing crescent-like high kicks. There are many kicks that move the leg outward from the middle, and inward from the outside using the side of the heels and the side of the feet. The art also uses tricks like inward trips, wall-jumping, fake-outs, tempo, and slide-stepping. The art is also like a dance in which the fighter constantly changes stance from left to right by stepping forward and backwards with arms up and ready to guard, blending arm movements with leg. Taekkyeon

Personality: Moon is soft spoken and often prefers to remain quiet than to speak up or act. She's not timid or shy, she just prefers not to raise her voice above a certain threshold when in conversation or in public. Possessed of a natural elegance from the manner in which she carries herself, Moon gives the air of someone in the nobility despite remaining cryptic about her life prior to Dragon's Peak Temple. What isn't so elegant about Moon is her love of drink, of alcohol in particular. Often she will enjoy more than her fair share of drink when the mood strikes. When she drinks, she retains her soft spoken nature, but speaks more bluntly and with slight more rude phrases. Despite Moon being genuinely friendly towards others, she doesn't consider herself as one with many comrades due to how often she simply, but politely, refuses the company of friends outside of sparring partners. It's apt that her name is Moon; she often seems as if she is constantly gazing towards it with how she communicates with others.

History: Moon was raised primarily by a midwife who was called upon to aid Moon's mother in the birth process due to her father fighting in the war. Moon's mother was inattentive, spending her time endlessly pining for the return of her husband. Moon forgave her. Her mother was a young adult, practically a child herself when she gave birth to Moon. A young girl in love who remained blindly devoted to her husband. Moon's mother worked as a maid for the village inn which frequently housed soldiers on their way to the recent battlefields. Moon's birth village wasn't terribly far from the Imperial City, and it was because of that distance that the midwife thought it best to groom Moon for a potential place within the Imperial City. It would be a better life than cleaning up after brusque soldiers all night.

The midwife instructed Moon on etiquette and music in hopes that the Imperial court would have need of a court musician or at the very least a proper servant with proper manners and posture. This training continued into Moon's early teen years. Moon and the midwife struck out for the Imperial City while Moon's mother slowly slipped into depression over the belief that her husband had died in the war. He hadn't, he had simply bedded up with another young, easily impressed girl in love.

Moon didn't stay long in the Imperial City. There was little need for a musician and Moon wasn't going to seek the employment of any place that required her to use her looks to earn pay. Moon decided simply to pick a spot near the city market and began to play her instrument. This continued until she was forcibly removed by an angry merchant and his angry hired help. The guards turned a blind eye, Moon had technically been performing without permission after all, and Moon was forced to defend herself. She did so by bashing the merchant with her bipa.

Her defense was spotted by a prospective student making the trip to Dragon's Peak Temple who, admittedly, was more interested in Moon for her appearance rather than her potential as a martial artist. Nevertheless, he invited her to tag along and offered to pay for repairing the bipa. Moon was tricked just enough to accompany him, provided that her instrument got repaired first.

Moon arrived at the temple at age sixteen. In her five years since being a student, she has shown no willingness to increase her position or rank within the temple, despite showing an affinity for her chosen style. Moon opts to spend her days plucking away at her bipa or lounging around under trees than to continually spar and rise in ranks. Some newer, more eager students see her as lazy for this, and that perspective lasts just long enough for them to lose in a challenge towards her. Moon is content to just sit under the trees and play her instruments, and until such a time where that isn't allowed, that's all Moon will enjoy doing.

[Jangel13]

Name: angelo lee
Age: 19
Gender: male
Appearance: http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2012/346/4/a/japanese_warrior_by_butterwaiman-d5nvimm.jpg

Belongings: yami and ya, a green cloak, a gold angel necklace from his father
Martial Art Style: shanxi preying mantis style: they gentle preying mantis style that involves redirecting the attacks of the enemy for pin point strikes and using the preying mantis to sometimes capture or lock opponents from attack further. the shanxi style is more resembling to a flowing stream and concentrates on evasion and counter attacks rather then brute force https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUw4JMKz0Uk
Chi Abilities: preying mantis muscle and nerve strikes allowing to use chi to block the nerve centers in the body to either disable muscle movement or even break bones with enough chi

Personality: always uses humor to relieve the tension of a situation. rather then be angry I cant help but try to crack a laugh or two. I usually have a smart mouth that has gotten my opponents angry and try to attack me so I could easily counter them. using my opponents rage and force against themselves
History: my father was a traveling merchant from a Spanish colony, where specifically I don't know. he was a good man or so I have been told from my prostitute mother. my father wanted to make a fortune for himself and he said he had to leave but he did leave me my most treasured possession. my gold angel necklace, it had his name on it and when I was born my mother decided to name me after him so that if he ever came back I knew what his name was and I could have a father again. my mother died when I was very young and I decided I had to leave and grow my fame and make a name for myself no matter what. nobody knew me but by the time my life would end my legend would reach even the heavens one day.

[Raineh Daze]

I will write something once I have a decent (AKA computer based) Internet connection again. And not relying on a phone that, for some reason, gives internet a capital by default.

^ Won't just one person's using first person clash?

[Elayne]

Well I am still interested and will post my CS as soon as I decide what kind of martial arts/ chi abilities to use. To be a sorcerer or a weapon user that is the question, if nobody focuses heavily on Chi I will.

[Rin]

Elayne said
if nobody focuses heavily on Chi

That's what I was planning on doing, if it means anything. ^^;

[Raineh Daze]

Well, I just had the worst idea: strangely chi-heavy drunk fighter. I don't think a fighting style where everything is named after cocktails is terribly sensible.

[Fabricant451]

Raineh Daze said
Well, I just had the worst idea: strangely chi-heavy drunk fighter. I don't think a fighting style where everything is named after cocktails is terribly sensible.

It'll be like drunken fist but with magic booze instead of just pretending to be drunk!

[TJByrum]

Any sort of 'drunken style' is fine by me. I love the Drunken Master style in Jade Empire! Just need to level it up more for it to actually be worthwhile.

Also, I'll read these bios later.

[Raineh Daze]

An attack named tequila Sunrise, though?