The World. A continent sheltered on all sides with an icy tundra to the North, a glittering ocean rolling away into the East, an arid desert to the South, and tall mountains to the West. For centuries, the inhabitants of the World thought little of what may lie beyond, they were content to spend their lives with the small tribes, and later kingdoms, that they were born into, trading and occasionally warring with their neighbors. It seemed likely that the World would continue in it's way for more centuries to come, if not for the actions of a young king, just inheriting his father's kingdom in the West. The young king had spent several years previous traveling the World, and carried inside of him new ideas that would have remained isolated, yet came together in him, the catalyst for the most momentous change in the World. Building an army that would rely upon the repeating crossbow, instead of sword and shield, the king dominated the battlefield, spreading the boundaries of his fledgling Empire across the West and South. And when he started to use the then unknown firecrystals, ignitable amber made from a volatile sap by a tree in the South as weapons, he soon took the entire World under the control of the Empire. And so it has been for the last 60 years. Under the guiding hand of the Emperor, the World has reached a golden age, with trade and knowledge flowing freely between the regions of the World. Though now an old man, the Emperor is still keen minded, and worries for the future of his creation. Though it isn't apparent to most, the Empire is viable to fall apart from vying regional interests, and the Emperor fears that it will collapse after his death. So the Emperor, remembering the unity held during the fledgling years of expansion across the World, believes that the best way to keep the Empire together is to expand. But where can you go once you control the known World? Go beyond the World, of course.
You will be taking the part of a member of the first Western Expedition, going past the Western Mountains and into uncharted territory. The journey will be hard, with numerous challenges, from deadly and predatory wildlife, harsh climates, and completely alien civilizations and even species. Your task will be to explore the World Beyond the World, find places for the Empire to expand, and then survive the return trip.
The roles you take on the Expedition are numerous:
An Outdoorsmen, someone hardened to life on the trail and able to withstand the difficulties ahead in the wilderness.
A Scientist, one of the Empires best and brightest, determined to study and discover the mystery's that lie beyond the World, following the most exacting methods.
An Ambassador, a master of the political maneuvering and charged with representing the Emperor's will when encountering other civilizations.
A Mage, practitioner of the most ancient art in the World. An art that has lost much relevance due to the decline of magic in the World, but one that the Emperor has much interest in, and hopes to discover more magic beyond the World.
A key mechanic in the Expedition Beyond the World is Exploration. There aren't any helpful encyclopedias sitting around that tell you everything you want to know about the place you've found yourself in, you have to explore, study, and observe things to make discovery's. These discoveries will be updated to the Codex, a resource that shares all that you've found. The best part? You get to name everything!
This interest check is an updated one of the first,. which was posted in Advanced originally.
I decided that it would be best to move this to Casual, since I feel more comfortable hosting a casual game than advanced one. This is meant for the casual-advanced crowd, it's complex, and there's a lot going on, but you don't need to write a novella for each post.
Since this game is going to have a lot of lore going on in the background, it's recommended that you read the codex for the World before writing a CS.
The CS, incidentally, can be found here, with a more in-depth look at the roles.
If you want to get a better scope of how the Expedition is going to look, the Expedition's manifest is provided.
Rules, and an explanation for the Exploration and magic mechanics will be posted shortly.
