Have you ever gotten the feeling that there was something bigger than you out there, in the cosmos? That one day, humanity might find its place among the stars?

Boy, I bet you feel like a sucker now.

***

Welcome to the Marvelous Game!


You're just a normal Earthling, minding your business, going about your day. Everything is as it should be. That is, until you start to feel woozy. What's happening? Headache? Brain aneurysm? Those can happen anywhere at anytime, you know. You soon realize, however, the truth is far more terrorizing - you've been abducted by aliens! You black out and remember little afterwards. You might recall that you were on an operating table, with a buglike face looking down at you, or maybe you remember seeing a group of aliens in a hushed discussion off in the corner, a holograph of your body lit up for all to see. Either way, you groggily awake in a large holding cell with many other humans. Or maybe it's a corral? Do the aliens plan to eat you, maybe?

Suddenly, a holograph sparks to life in the cell - you see a crowd of thousands of aliens - terrible little things, to be sure - all cheering, hollering and hooting. They're in a stadium, you realize! What are they cheering for, and why are you seeing this?

"Welcome, humans!" a scratchy voice calls out over a loudspeaker. The cheering intensifies. "Don't be alarm! We have much fun plan for you!" Ok, maybe Hollywood has set an unrealistic standard of the grasp aliens have on the English language, you realize. "We are welcome you to The Marvelous Game!" The crowd continues to cheer - "Marvelous Game! Marvelous Game!" - over and over. When they settle, the announcer continues. "We have had many species play the Marvelous, but never before humans! You will fight in the Marvelous, and if you don't get die, you get rich beyond your wildest dream!" These aliens want you to fight? Do they realize you're not great at that?

"Many danger await you, humans, but many glory also! Welcome to the Marvelous, Team Earth! And try not to get die!" The crowd cheers one final time, and then the holograph vanishes. The humans are alone in the corral.

At the far side of the cell, a gate opens.

***


Welcome to the Marvelous Game, players! This roleplay is going to be combat oriented, and you're all going to work in a team (hopefully!). The plot is as I've laid it out in the intro. You're a normal human from 2015 who has been abducted by aliens and put into a very elaborate arena. Inside awaits a multitude of trials meant to test your cunning, intelligence, strength, and teamwork skills. If you cannot pass these tests, you will die. If you can, you'll survive - and maybe become rich beyond your wildest dreams, just like the aliens said. This is meant to be something of a "short story" roleplay - characters will begin to die off, sooner rather than later. If your character dies, you're welcome to join the peanut gallery in the OOC - and root for your favorites to make it out of the Marvelous Game.

The combat will be a combination of dice rolls and story influences. For example - your character, Bob, is attacked by an alien bear monster (oh no!). You choose to have Bob fight the bear, but you wrote in Bob's backstory that he is no good in a fight. I subtract one from the dice roll, which was originally 4, and Bob becomes Wounded. You have Bob try to escape by climbing a tree, which you wrote was one of Bob's favorite pastimes as a child (Bob was a strange kid). I add two to the dice roll, which was 3, and Bob safely escapes the bear.

This roleplay will be a mix of serious combat, player interaction and character development, and also some light-hearted humor, as I hope you saw in the intro. Especially with the aliens, who are just as maniacal and sadistic as I plan to be to your characters.

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Let me know what you think, feel free to ask questions and tell me if you're interested!