Such Haukes, Such Hounds

[Bainshie]

Expressing interest: Would be interested in making a general character (May or may not have magic, need more sleep and shit to think about it.

[Nemaisare]

Heh, this is why I ask. Sorry for delaying your bedtime by a half hour, I know it always just goes nooooooo why'd I have to look when I'm about ready for bed. So glad you did though. :)

I wasn't too sure about how well the gods were supposed to be known or fleshed out or physically present in this world, Lacchi's generally not a big part of the pantheon as I know it, nor overly interested in being godly(the trickster characteristics are very much present), so I usually find that he can manage interactions as a dog fairly well. And, where the magic allows, I would give him telepathy or reverse, uncontrollable kinda-werewolfism... But! that is for another time. I don't need him for this, since I already wasn't sure, and the point about making a god being a rather sweeping generalisation, whoops, did not think about that. My bad. I'm not entirely certain how he entirely missed the point of the rp, though?

The suggestion to just play an intelligent animal, I could certainly go for. And more questions coming your way, heh. If this doesn't turn out, I'll either just play a dog or go for that jester position. See if I can't pull that off. I like fools. Or some other person. Who is not fourlegged. :P

I have an idea that sounds a bit similar to winter wolves, large wolf-like creature, lives in pairs or packs and protects those theybond with, along with their territory. I say bond because it's a little more than human with dog, but a human and a dog could probably manage the same level of closeness if they really wanted to. Dunno. Anyway, they look like giant wolves, but have been tamed by the natives of the archipelago, might still be in the process of domestication though, but a king might like to have one nearby. They are roughly of the same intelligence as a dog, but probably with a greater capacity to learn human things, and can communicate through images. (though that probably doesn't fit well with the magic here, I don't think...)

appearance

Quick sketchy thing, argh the eyes, but yes, there's supposed to be three, and the ears are bigger than usual, though they might be too far back here...

Yep...

[Maxwell]

I'm a little concerned. In this game, your relationship with the king and your motivation for revenge really should be at the heart of your character. Exotic races are fine and dandy, but only if they serve some kind of purpose. If you really only wanted to play a wolf, for example, roleplaygateway has tons of wolf pack games (and I don't mean this to be derogatory in any way). If you really only wanted to play a magical beast of some sort, there's no need to restrain yourself to dogs and wolves - you can play a three-headed pink giraffe if you want (if you can convince me it's not a joke character, that is - this isn't that kind of game!).

My issue with the three-eyed wolf-thing is that I'm not seeing a strong theme, and I'm not seeing the underlying reasons you want to play this thing, except that it lets you play a dog-like creature that still has a convenient way to speak to the party. I can imagine a hundred ways any of these things could be done well, but I have no idea what you're trying to achieve. I have a creeping suspicion we're not on the same page at all, but I'll await your reply before I make any hasty assumptions.

[Bainshie]

Edit: Whoops, it seems like my attempts to post my interest last night while the post thing wasn't working all ended up eventually going through....

[Maxwell]

Don't worry, I already requested the deletion of the last five.

[Lexicon]

So, Maxwell, right now my ideas are as follows: 1.) A high priestess of some kind, one with enough political and religious clout to have been a close, personal friend of the king, 2.) A spymistress as opposed to a spymaster, though I'd defer to your judgment as to whether or not an idea like this is viable in your setting, 3.) A royal assassin with some connection to the late king. Let me know your thoughts, and I'll see what I can do.

[Maxwell]

All three of those work fine. The king appoints whomsoever he wishes, baby. Additionally, if the capital city (and surrounding towns, I suppose) need to be reasonably equal for your background to work, then they will be.

In general, the kingdom's policies will depend on which characters join the game. If you play high priestess of god X and bffs with the king, then god X is what the king will worship as well. Unless it's something unkingly, like a god of parliamentary democracies. That wouldn't work.

[Lexicon]

I was thinking the god of orgies, drinking blood, and slaughtering children. That's okay, right? =P

[Maxwell]

I would actually be fine with that, if it weren't for the fact that I think I've implied some moral ambiguity in this game. I don't think people came into this expecting that kind of game.

[Lexicon]

Bah, no fun. Anyways, I'm assuming you want us to hold off on making CSes until the actual OOC goes up? I'm thinking I'll probably just go with the royal assassin. Probably.

[Maxwell]

Feel 100% free to write one now if you prefer. I'm going to paste them on the first page of the OOC anyway. Much more convenient than links, I think, so long as there are hiders.

Oh, and as to that talk about turning something into a dog, I just remembered I didn't address that. As it says up there, a wizard could theoretically do anything, but in reality their powers are very limited. Turning a human into a dog, for example, would involve describing all the internal workings and the exact appearance of a human, all the internal workings and exact appearance of a dog, as well as the process whereby one turns into the other. It's questionable whether all the magical terms involved are even known to all the wizards in the world, collectively, and there is certainly not a single wizard who could speak them all without stopping to draw breath. In fact, it would be a lot easier to turn a human into, say, gold, since that only involves a single kind of atom in the latter part of the spell. Still basically impossible, though.

Not that you need to be a chemist to play a wizard. A passing familiarity with high school science should be more than enough - just fill the blanks in with pulp. Just remember that the more complex and powerful a substance, reaction, item, etc is, the more words it takes to describe. A skilled enough wizard might be able to turn a human into what looks like a dog through a series of thousands of small changes, each sustainable (if unspeakably agonizing to live through) on its own, but if you cut that creature open, it probably wouldn't look like a dog on the inside. Kind of like that movie, Walrus, but with magic.

[Rayn Night]

I would want to play a martial artist warrior of Ki that prones non-violence (But will defend himself as needed) and would be a more "Sane" adviser. Why he was taken in? Well, he is one of the very few people who manipulate Ki in a way most cannot understand and it was the price for his people so that they were not slaughtered by the King. My character would have willingly surrendered his freedom if it meant that he would let his people live under his rule.

Sounds like a good premise?

[Hank]

Hank

Name: Nykerius “The Stormsinger” of Crevasse.
Race: Human.
Age: 67.
Position: Court wizard and advisor of the King.
Appearance: Dignified, bespectacled, greybearded, Nykerius is the model image of an aging sorcerer. His eyes are a brilliant shade of emerald, still sharp as ever, betraying his intelligence and keen awareness, but they are his only feature that has not aged. His shoulder-length hair is as grey as the aforementioned beard and his face is lined and weathered. With the aid of a walking cane to compensate for a slight limp, Nykerius reaches slightly over six feet at his full height. He dresses in surprisingly plain (but decidedly well-made) robes for someone of his station, preferring to understate his appearance. His presence carries weight, however, and his deep voice and piercing gaze demand respect from all but the most ignorant of curs.
Personality: The Stormsinger is a well-mannered, calm and occassionally humorous old man who has made peace with the fact that he is well beyond his prime. Bravado has made place for wisdom and where he used to lead armies with gusto, he now advises and counsels in gentle tones. Nykerius is a firm believer in giving everyone a chance, and treats friend and foe alike with courtesy and respect (though he may be more inclined to kill the latter – politely, of course). As such, he is quick to be friendly and many people throughout the kingdom of Altranor consider him their friend. Nykerius is a private person, however, and few people truly know him as well as they think they do, and he has no true close friends. He detests senseless violence, cruelty and rudeness. He quietly worships a god of magic called Sotharis, the patron of sorcerous scholars.
Backstory: Nykerius is of relatively high birth. He was born the eldest son of the Lord of Crevasse, the ruling noble of a prosperous port city not far from the capital of Altranor. The Lord of Crevasse was an accomplished military commander in his time, and Nykerius was expected to be no different. He was taught the art of warfare and tactical command from a young age. Nykerius never complained about this education, though he made it no secret to his father that he desired different knowledge altogether... the knowledge of arcane magic. His father was not an unkind man, and Nykerius was allowed to learn magic as well.

As a young adult, Nykerius attended a prestigious college in the capital of Altranor along with many of the other brightest minds of his generation. His prodigious intelligence and quick grasp of spellcraft did not go unnoticed, nor did his cunning and tactical command. Immediately following graduation, Nykerius became an officer in the Altranorian army, simultaneously a commander and a battlemage – one of the few to hold such a post. He was beloved by the men and well-liked by his commanders. He very rarely indulged in personal combat, instead preferring to lead and direct from the backlines, where he could work his particular brand of magic. His soldiers found themselves fighting in perfect conditions, while their various enemies crawled out of mud-stained camps, half-swept away by rainstorms the night before the battle.

His crowning achievement came near the end of his military career; the resounding victory that earned him the title of the Stormsinger. It was a pitched naval battle between Altranorian forces and the corsair fleet of a rival warlord. All throughout the night, Nykerius sang, his voice carrying far across miraculously still waters. Blankets of fog were coaxed out the darkness to cloak the ships of Altranor and confuse the corsair fleet. Then he sang to the sea, like a man slowly stirring his cup of tea with a spoon before drinking it. He sang to the wind and the clouds, forces that gathered above the corsair fleet, looming and dark. The sea became restless, waves beating against the wooden hulls of the Stormsinger's foes. The wind howled and whistled, blasting unwanted winds into sails that sent the ships twisting and turning, crashing into each other. And then with a final piece of magic, a carefully crafted verse, the sea opened up like the mouth of the abyssal sea-god Maelrawn. A great maelstrom swalloed the enemy warlord's flagship whole as lighting struck masts and decks. In this chaos, this legendary storm, Nykerius withdrew the cloaking fog and his fleet utterly crushed the enemy corsairs.

This feat of magic was widely celebrated throughout Altranor and Nykerius was immortalized as the Stormsinger, one of the great commanders that would go down in history. He retired from military service not long after, returning to the capital of Altranor to teach at the very same prestigious college he received his own education, instead of returning home to take up the mantle of the Lord of Crevasse. Instead, Nykerius's younger brother, Ezekyle, became head of the family and lord of the port city, an arrangement that was made amicably between all parties -- except the elderly Lord of Crevasse himself. The old man died still upset with Nykerius for what he saw as abandoning his post, and he never condoned Ezekyle as Lord of Crevasse. Nykerius, torn between duty and his own desires, returned to Crevasse to reluctantly become the port city's Lord. Ezekyle, however, did not agree. He had been promised the position, he argued, and claimed it was unfair that it was now taken from him. The truth was that Ezekyle desired power and wanted to escape from the shadow cast by the great Stormsinger. The two brothers argued vehemently but the situation remained unresolved when their father passed away. The port city needed its new Lord, now, and there was no time left to argue. Ezekyle seized the chance, claimed his title and had Nykerius deported from the city. Unwilling to fight his own brother and greatly saddened by his actions, Nykerius returned to the capital.

The rift between the two brothers did not heal for a long time. Nykerius settled at the college as a teacher and severed all ties with his family back in Crevasse. He influenced and educated two decades of bright minds while continuing his studies of meteorological magic, which remained his area of expertise. It was during this time that he became something of a friend to the royal family; Nykerius mentored a younger cousin of the king Erasmus himself. When the young man graduated, Nykerius was invited to attend the private feast in the king's court, and it was during this festive evening that Nykerius and Erasmus became friends. Four years later, Nykerius, now age 50, decided to also retire from teaching. He settled by the king's side as court wizard at Erasmus's own request. When news of this reached Ezekyle, he feared for his position. Now that Nykerius had the king's ear, surely there would be repercussions Ezekyle's actions? But months passed and no such repercussions came. Nykerius never spoke ill of his brother and he assured anyone who asked that they were on good terms. The next time Ezekyle traveled to the capital for an audience with the king, the two brothers came face to face for the first time in decades. They reconciled on the spot, and Nykerius spent the next 17 years of his life frequently traveling to Crevasse as often as his duties as court wizard and king's advisor would allow, quickly becoming the favorite uncle of Ezekyle's children. Nykerius himself never married and remained childless.

Until the fateful day that the Yellow Raven and his allies attacked Altranor. The Green Crow assaulted Crevasse while Bernard of Ghant's army marched on the capital, preventing the port city from sending reinforcements to the king's aid. Ezekyle fought valiantly, but he never had his older brother's knack for warfare and the port city fell. The Lord of Crevasse and his entire family were executed. When word of this reached Nykerius, he almost lost his senses and wanted to ride for Crevasse immediately, but it was too late. The Yellow Raven's army was there. Nykerius would have slain Bernard of Ghant, or died trying, if the man had been there, but he didn't even bother to show up. When king Erasmus fell from the tower, Nykerius knew it was all over, and hid -- he locked himself in the royal library and watched from a window as Erasmus fell to his death. His own family killed and the entire royal family slain, he knew that he had one last duty left in life -- to avenge them all.

Notable Possessions: The Stormsinger's spectacles are inscribed with a simple shocking lightning spell for personal defense, and his walking cane doubles as a wind-caller. Other notable possessions include a veritable library of magical tomes, now probably lost & ransacked by the Yellow Raven's army, and a respectable sum of money.

[Maxwell]

Rayn Knight: Not impossible, but:

1) Try not to step on the actual spellcasters' toes too much when creating your ki powers. It was very much intended to be an internal power that allows you to bend metal, hold your breath for hours, walk on water - basically, if you can imagine a rogue/barbarian/knight going 'meh, I can do that with sheer skill/toughness/willpower', you're right on the money. Try to avoid laser beams and such.

2) Why does your character care about the king dying, when the man held his entire people hostage?

Hank: No complaints.

[Hank]

I'll take that as a compliment.

[Rayn Night]

1)Well, it wouldn't be spellcasting at all (At least not for now, maybe later in a more simple term of energy (Nothing crazy either)). He would simply be able to be physically stronger, faster and tougher than he looks, but not to the point of being godly. (Just a lot more powerful than people believe him to be.

2) Well, he could talk to the King and he KNEW the king wouldn't harm them... But if someone else comes along, this protection isn't valid anymore

[Nemaisare]

It's not derogatory, it's true, however, most wolf rps out there, yes, I have looked once or twice ;), are less realistic than I'd like them to be. But not for this character.

Personally, I'm an avid fan of realism within fantastical settings, and I do understand your misgivings. If I cannot convince you with this post that I'm not just trying to play a wolf/dog/exotic monster, then I will happily leave it lie and play something else if you'll have the more ordinary character I create then.

Honestly, and this is probably a bad place to start, I am bringing this character forward from other roleplays I have written with him, because I do want to play him again and there are not a lot of giant, three-eyed dog rps out there. But the Anan(as I call them) were not created to be played with others of their kind, they were made to interact with humans or human-like characters. I am not bringing him forward just because I want to play him, but because, to me, it seemed like a good fit. Admittedly, I could be wrong, I'm not infallible, but I read the IC introduction of a character staring at the dead king while fighting goes on in other places and felt that well, honestly, that'd be a great introduction to a pig considering the king landed on the pigpen, but it could also encompass, as I'm sure you were aware, any number of character species, thoughts, emotions and reactions.

Now, to me, a canine's relationship with anything or one is going to be at the heart of the character no matter what. Every character should be shaped by their surroundings, but a dog is going to reflect those surroundings far more readily on the outside than most humans, if violence has been done, then violence or fear will be the reaction. As the Anan are large animals, there'd be less fear involved. As an Anan and not 'just a dog'(there's some really incredible dogs out there *cough*) he'd have the ability to look, see and guage for himself where best to put his anger to use. And if other characters want to temper his actions and put him to even better use, they could well use him as a meatshield, or hold him back for surprise purposes. That would be up to them.

The reason I believe he'd be motivated to react poorly against the invaders is because, if he has been a part of the king's pack for awhile, as he'd see it, then they've just killed the king. He'd have felt it was his obligation to protect the king and he'd be sorely upset that he did not manage it. But he'd also, as a member of the king's pack, see the others who were close to the king as people to listen to and stand beside. Because they still exist, the territory still exists, and if their territory still exists then they should chase the invaders off it. And because he did not manage to protect the king, he'd be extra motivated to protect everyone else, once he's aware of them anyway, his first reaction would be to attack the first enemy soldiers he finds. Yes, it's not quite the we do this for vengeance, I hate your guts, Bernard of Ghant rally that might motivate a character to do impossible things. But he would, rather, be doing it out of a sense of loyalty to those characters the king has shown he, maybe loved is too strong a word, but wanted around him, and out of loyalty to a place the king gave to him to protect.

What I think this character would offer to this particular rp is in the first instance, a creature that could be used by the others to accomplish their ends if they need something of the sort. He is only a smart dog, if they see him as expendable, then he's expendable. If they see him as a glorified messanger, he can be a messenger. If they seem him as a valuable member of this revenge business, then he might well be that too. He'd also be more a protector of them than of their interests, which might help them stay alive long enough to accomplish what both he and they want accomplished. His goal would be to make the soldiers leave and likely to kill their leader because that is what they did to his leader, and while reciprocation won't win the king back, it might cement the idea that they need to leave.

If this is of any use in helping you understand where I'm coming from, great, if not, I shall try something else. No sweat. Thanks for being patient with me.

EDIT: Also, thanks for that further explanation of the magic as pertains to the dog thing. I get it now. I was simplifying things a little in my head. Cool. I like this magic.