[OOC] Dehumanized

[Penguin]

(Thanks Rookery!)

In 2015, the entire world was pulled into nuclear warfare as World War 3 began. One country bombed another and that's all it took for others to retaliate, creating a back and forth nuclear war that managed to destroy most of humanity. It never officially ended due to the massive loss of life.

Twenty years later, the world is a completely different story. It is rare we see the sun anymore. The sky is usually overcast by clouds as dark as charcoal. Temperatures are cooler than they used to be and it's often a struggle to keep warm. It doesn't rain nor snow as much as it used to either. Growing crops is harder than ever with increased UV radiation due to the thinning of the ozone layer and a frost-free growing season for crops shortened by 10 to 40 days, depending on the region. Skin cancer ran rapid during these years. The population of the Earth has dropped to the thousands. Those who didn't die in the bombings died from disease, starvation or perhaps they were killed by each other.

It is a fight for survival. Laws and morals have been long forgotten. Many have resorted to becoming bandits, killing others for everything they own. These bandits sometimes group together and live nomadically, constantly killing anyone else they can find. Those of us who cling on to some idea of morals, we try to stay away from them as much as we can and fend for ourselves. Those that live sedentary lifestyles either live in random, abandoned places or in small, forted communities that often kill those who try to enter on sight usually due to fear of disease or of spies looking to expose their location. Other people aren't the only ones we have to worry about...

Animals have been mutating faster than the world has ever seen before. The exposure to extreme radiation and chemicals has caused for change in their DNA. They are bigger, faster, and definitely more hungry. There have been cases of flying snakes, eight-foot wolves, and even three-foot wasps. Humans have been mutating too, with cases of men with large eyes with the ability to accomplish night vision and of people with teeth as sharp as razors. People are evolving regressively to be less like humans and more like beasts.

In this new, dehumanized world, we face danger at every corner. Can you survive?

THEME POINTERS

RULES:
- All normal RPG guidelines apply, meaning mature themes are allowed but if there comes a time where romantically-involved persons are getting too hot and heavy, take it to the PM.
- This is a High-Casual roleplay. Please try to keep your posts to at least a 2-3 paragraph minimum. More is encouraged.
- Rookery is co-GM.
- The RPG takes place in the US. Try to keep the characters all there.
- No Mary-Sues. You're not just going to walk down the street, defeating everything in sight like it's nothing. It's a difficult world to live in and chances are you probably don't know the first thing about living in it.
- No godmodding
- No speedposting
- Have fun!

CHARACTER FORM

Name:
Age:
Gender:
Nomadic or sedentary:
Weapons (Don't go crazy):
Skills:
Any unusual traits? Does it show physically?:
Appearance:
Brief Personality (Try to show most of your character's personality IC instead of giving it all away):
Background(Please reveal your current location):
Alone or with someone?:
Other:

[Potter]

Cool! I like it. I'll be joining soon. :)

[Rookery]

My Character, Trinket

Name: Nobody knows and she never say. Once she was called "Trinket" and ever since then she introduce herself as such.
Age: ~24
Gender: Female

Lifestyle: She tries to stay close around "safe" groups but most parts she's a solitary scavenger/nomad.

Weapons: She carries two shivs as tools/weapons, one out of glass and the other a filer.

Skills: She can read a little but she can't spell. She has great topographical instincts; she knows where to hide and find items, knows how to get to inaccessible areas, knows hiding spots and places safe to rest. She has practical tracking knowledge; she won't be able to tell you what game came about, but she would be able to tell you the general direction it's going. She has good hearing but slightly poor vision. She's not strong or a fast runner but she compensates with greater endurance and her topographical instincts.

Unusual Traits: She has a split (lower) jaw due to mutation. She can't close them physically leading her to have sloppy stitches to keep it together. It doesn't serve a function asides from being a liability. The mutation brings other undesirable side-effects, such as increase salivation and acidity* which gives off a distinct smell. Chewing is also a problem hence she only drinks liquid or fine chopped pieces she could simply swallow.

Appearance: She's skinny and of average height but her stature makes her look shorter than she really is. She has long light brown hair but time and dirt made it muddy. Her eyes are light brown. Her clothing articles are in different state of decay and are either holed, torn or haphazardly patched up. She wears a hiking vest over a hoodie, jeans, mismatched rubber shoes and carries a sack around. She uses anything to keep her lower face covered, especially among others.

Brief Personality: She's wary and on edge, always ready to bolt if she suspects trouble. She avoids talking due to her mutation, she speaks with a spitty accent.

Background: She's an apocalypse baby hence she knows nothing of the old world. She's currently trailing a nomadic group for the past few of months. They know who she is and welcomes her from time to time but it really depends if she has something to barter. (Personally, I would like to explore and reveal her background as the rp goes on.)

*The acidity of her saliva won't burn through skin, it might irritate but it will never burn skin. It only helps her digest food since chewing is hard for her.

EDIT: August 14, Added a picture and change her description slightly, she has long hair instead of short now (to suit the image).

[Metronome]

.

[Penguin]

Accepted. Nice characters so far :)

[Rookery]

I don't like to be a buzz kill here but should Isam a little bit older? Since the setting start 20 years after the WW3, wouldn't he be five when it started?

[Metronome]

Yeah, he would have 5. I don't see the problem :/

[Rookery]

Oh okay, I see where you're heading at :) I thought he got his skills during WW3.

[Metronome]

He did get his skills during WW3. I still don't see a problem

[StephenRouse]

Marcus Williams

Name: Marcus Williams

Age: 42

Gender: Male

Nomadic or sedentary: Sedentary, leads a small settlement.

Weapons: Machete made from an old mower blade, Old revolver

Skills: Before the apocalypse, he was studying law at a renowned college. He's something of an intellectual, although the apocalypse has hardened significantly. He has extensive knowledge of the old world laws, and since the fall, has studied up in subjects ranging from electronics to agriculture, as well as some black smithing and plumbing. He isn't much of a fighter, but his people skills are strong, knowing how to lead people to the conclusions he prefers.

Any unusual traits? Does it show physically?: He has slightly heightened senses, which serve solely to sense pheromones in the air. This allows him a sort of empathy, so he can sense when people are angry or agitated, even when they don't otherwise show it. It also allows him to manipulate his own pheromones to subtly manipulate others. These mutations manifest as tumorous-looking bulges around his nose and cheeks, which he passes off as just that; tumors.

Appearance: He is tall with thin, dark hair. His face would be almost handsome, if it weren't for the numerous pea-sized tumors on his face. Wearing a relatively intact suit or casual dress clothing, Marcus tries to appear well kept, although that's difficult in the new world.

Brief Personality : Charismatic and optimistic, talking to him belies a certain intelligence, and most are drawn to him as a leader. It is also generally well known that he is self-indulging, although his followers don't seem to mind considering how well he has kept their settlement together.

Background: Born to a well-off family, Marcus spent most of his childhood at a private school, where he was considered gifted and well spoken. As a teenager he grew an interest in law, and worked with his lawyer father to learn the ins and outs before enrolling into law school after graduating. There he was surprised to find he was no longer one of the best and brightest, above average at best. He worked hard and long to surpass his peers, and eventually became well known to his professors.

After WW3 began, Marcus tried to continue his studies to the best of his abilities. However, shortly after bombs began to fall, a nearby city was targeted and the college was evacuated, forcing Williams to flee and find safety. He and a small group of his friends stuck together for a few years, suffering through what felt like the apocalypse together, dying slowly. They lived as bandits, preying off the weak and doing acts they regret. Marcus assumed a sort of leadership position after their previous died in an attack by other bandits, leaving only him and three others. They stumbled on a small settlement shortly after, and posed as merchants to enter the small fortified building.

What they found surprised them, and they soon settled down. His friends continued to die off, soon leaving only Marcus, and he grew to be something of a local celebrity, teaching the few children around and building a library. Eventually their previous mayor died of dysentery, and he was elected their new leader following a brief election. He runs the growing settlement of seventy people, settled on an emerging trade route.

Alone or with someone: With a good sized group, although some are children and sickly.

Other:
The settlement, named Rampart, has around seventy people. Around half are too young, old, or infirm to be of much use beyond keeping watch or assisting in the fields. The rest work fields full time and keep watch. Their armory is scarce, and they rely on pikes and bows heavily.

[Rookery]

WW3 started in 2015 so says the first paragraph and the RP beings 20 years after WW3, on the 2nd paragraph. Of course, a single point is missing, when did WW3 ended? We don't know but we do know that the RP is set 20 years after WW3. So if Isam was 23 when he set foot in America and assuming WW3 ended then, then logically Isam would be 20 years older, making him 43 when the RP starts.

My previous thought process was that a pseudo Iraqi government existed during the 20 year intermission of WW3 and "RPresent" which Isam was part of the military. Two years before RPresent he set foot in America, giving him two years experience within the country which would make him 25 years old.

[Daemyn Sterk]

Oo, this looks like it'd be a lot of fun! Count me in. :)

Quest Abbott

Name: Quest Abbott

Age: 15

Gender: Male

Nomadic or sedentary: Sedentary

Weapons: A self bow and arrow, and a hunting knife.

Skills: Though nowhere near an expert, Quest is proficient in the arts of tracking and hiding one's tracks. He's a strange mixture of agile and clumsy, able to climb trees and start up a swift run with ease, though also tending to bump into objects and lose his footing, resulting in him tripping. Due to his small body size, Quest lacks any natural strength, though years of bow shooting, running, and climbing has helped counter that, though he still wouldn't hold up in much of a melee fight. Quest is quite a good shot with his bow due to his heightened perception, which makes him a great hunter. Able to keep light on his feet and quiet, and can be quite swift for being such a small size. Can read and write to a certain extent, though can't do much in the ways of mathematics. Though not stupid, he's not the sharpest tool in the shed either. Able to skin most animals with ease. Quest isn't very endurant and can't keep up a run for very long.

Any unusual traits? Does it show physically?: Quest has heightened perception allowing him to spot many things that another would not, this shows in his unusually large eyes.

Appearance: Quest is short, standing at a mere 5'2 in height. He's small in figure and isn't very muscular or any of that. He's slight in width and has sloping shoulders. Quest has medium length red-orange hair that's cut unevenly and hangs just above his neck. Unusually large, light green eyes. For clothing, Quest usually wears a long-sleeved hooded jacket that's way too long for him, nearly reaching his knees, and a pair of baggy cargo pants along with ankle high work boots. Always wears a rabbit-foot necklace.

Brief Personality: On the outside, Quest is rash and reckless, not thinking about the consequences of his actions. Quick to anger and assume, Quest can be seen as arrogant. He's open-going and adventurous, always curious about his surroundings, a trait that often gets him into trouble. Though on the inside, Quest is different, self-conscious to a fault and hesitant when it comes to important decisions. Stubborn.

Background: Quest was born five years after the events of World War Three, the cruel world blackened by war being all that he knows. Growing up in a little settlement trying to salvage civilization, Quest never knew his real parents. No one ever knew who his real father was, birth was too much for Quest's mother, resulting in her death. With no one else to take care him in, it then had to be decided whom would be the boy's provider. A grizzled old hunter volunteered for this duty and decided to take the boy in as his own.

The hunter, Al, raised Quest in a rough, though caring household. He was unforgiving when it came to punishing the boy, though he always looked out for him. Quest grew up learning the ins and outs of hunting and tracking, learning to provide for himself and others. Though the physical work wasn't kind to Quest, he pushed past his limitations and kept on going. It was from Al that Quest adopted his resolute nature, vowing to never give in.

Quest was always an explorer, often escaping from the settlement to explore the lands outside. This often led him into trouble, accidentally venturing upon all kinds of dangerous creatures. Alas, it wasn't the creatures that ended Quest's peaceful life in the settlement, it was humanity. It was when Quest was 15, off on one of his little adventures outside the settlement, that he saw smoke coming from the distant direction of his little town. By the time that Quest had made it back to the village, it was too late to do anything. The settlement had been pillaged and destroyed, the inhabitants left maimed or dead, left to the unforgiving nature of the land around them. Al must of caused some trouble for the bandits, for he had been tortured and bound on a stake in the direct center of the town. He was long dead when Quest got there, and there was nothing he could do for him, nor any of the other villagers. Quest was alone, his entire world cascading down around him.

For the next six months, Quest has survived in a small pre-war shack set at the end of a forest, living off the land. Though hunting is dangerous and resources are rare, and Quest is having a hard time. It won't be long until this cruel world takes him, whether beast or starvation be it he does not know.

Alone or with someone?: Alone

Other: Nopes! :p

[Penguin]

Cs's accepted. Sorry forgot that one detail I fixed it.

[Metronome]

Rookery said
WW3 started in 2015 so says the first paragraph and the RP beings 20 years after WW3, on the 2nd paragraph. Of course, a single point is missing, when did WW3 ended? We don't know but we do know that the RP is set 20 years WW3. So if Isam was 23 when he set foot in America and assuming WW3 ended then, then logically Isam would be 20 years older, making him 43 when the RP starts.My previous thought process was that a pseudo Iraqi government existed during the 20 year intermission of WW3 and "RPresent" which Isam was part of the military. Two years before RPresent he set foot in America, giving him two years experience within the country which would make him 25 years old.

Okay so many I'm just really tired but I'm not following. Maybe this will clear things up =P

2010: Isam is born somewhere around this time.
2011: His father dies in war.
2015: WW3 starts. Isiam is 5.
2022: Isam becomes a child soldier at age of 12.
2029: Isam becomes interrogator
2025- 2032: Iraq is taken over at some point during this period. Isam is captured
2033: Isam is brought to America and escapes
2035: The current year

[Metronome]

Well now Penguin says is ended in 2019, which kind of screws that all up.

I would have assumed a war that ended civilization would have taken longer than five years.

[StephenRouse]

It makes sense, IMO. Even assuming there was a few years of ground combat before nukes started flying, it wouldn't take long for basically the apocalypse to occur. Even just a few days of nuclear missiles launching would spell the end pretty well.

[Metronome]

Long enough for humans to begin evolving/adapting to it?

You know, I don't even care about it at this point

it's a minor detail that will never come up in the RP

bottom line is that isam has been in the states for 2 years

i don't care how he did it

maybe he time traveled

[Penguin]

I changed it again so that what you're saying makes sense. LOL sorry I'm tired too. I'm saying now that it just never officially was called off since they just blew each other to smithereens.

[Metronome]

See I just figured there were probably some assholes who were even still going at it and the war, officially, was still going

idk

thanks man

now i can sleep well tonight

[Rookery]

I'm working on a lot of assumptions so maybe if we clear a few things up, a proper timeline could be establish. I'm suggesting this kind of timeline:

Apocalypse
2014: Global Political Tension, initial deceleration of war and deployment of troops.
2015: Complete and Official deceleration of war of all sovereign nations. Official Start of World War III.
2016: Mass Casualties; Human Rights Violation; Mass Declining Moral, everybody wanting the war to finally end.
2017: Governments Fall but Peace Negotiations are going nowhere.
2018: The first Nuclear Missiles are lunched; Anarchy through out the world.
2019: The Seventh Seal:

And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets. And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer [it] with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, [which came] with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand. And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast [it] into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.

- Revelation 8:1-6; King James Version

And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.

- Revelation 16:1; King James Version

Post-Apocalypse
2020: Nuclear Winter and Fallout; First Signs of Mutations. Possible Pseudo-Governments are establish.
2030: Stabilization of the weather and mutations, decreasing Fallout. Total disappearance of Pseudo-Governments.
2039: Present Day....

Reference: 1) M.A.D. 2) Nuclear Holocaust 3) Nuclear Winter
Note: I read all of them before, I don't know if I remember the contents exactly but anyways, a realistic timeline isn't really necessary to get to the actual setting of the story just that the characters should be able to flow accordingly, ya know what I mean?

P.S.: Dang, I wrote too slow, lols....
On second thought, after doing small revisions, I think this timeline would fit the initially posted description of the setting and Isam's Background. What do you guys think?