Welcome to the continent of Illyrica, where your hard work is likely to be undone and your hopes and dreams shattered (all in the name of fun, of course).
Everyone has their nation, and every nation is well aware of the strange all powerful Volcano that dwells, and very much lives in the center of the continent. Strange hairy men serve the volcano personally, these are the Bannik, the listeners of the Volcano. They swear they can hear it talking to them, and no one really argues.
The volcano is very active in politics, religion, and war. Every now and again it will decide to alter the world, set up a storm, or change the political landscape. From it dwells all magic, the power no other being carries outside of the extremely rare enchanter or bearer of a magical artifact.
Of course the Volcano has created amazing artifacts over the years, some with the power to utterly destroy or build nations, others with amazing personal powers… so often pined for by the knowledgeable, and greedily snatched by the two largest religions.
One religion searches to confine and control the flow of power for the elite, and label the volcano as an evil entity, this is Yahasato (see @Aristo’s sheet or message him). The other reveres nature and her gifts, and most notably the Volcano and its well of power. They collect the artifacts and dwell on the magic of the Volcano to better serve the natural world, these are the (message @Darkspleen).
So take your nation in what form you will and carve your story upon the porous rocks of hell. This is your time, and your land, how will you run it? Will you beseech the mighty volcano for powerful boons or deadly curses to aim at your enemy? Can you afford the task the Volcano will offer you in return for its help? Or will you ignore the Volcano, and suffer its wrath? What will you do?
Welcome to Illyrica!
Currently we have Satyrs, Grogar (message @Sigma), Humans, and pixies (chicken sized creatures you can’t have a nation complete with only these guys), as playable races. Please PM if you have an idea for another.
Magic is limited to rare and specific numbers in populations, and only with the power to enchant or create potions, albeit nowhere near as powerful as Volcano Artifacts or boons/curses.
It is currently mid summer, and the tech level is late iron age. Enjoy.
(will be updated as more information becomes available)
How the Volcano works:
Characters can travel to the volcano and ask it for anything, and the Volcano will unbiasedly give the character a task (or perhaps not) and a set of rules to which the character must fulfil in order to get their wish completed by the Volcano.
After a set amount of time the Volcano will seek out players, either by granting dreams to random characters that carry deadly curses, tasks, amazing boons, or a number of other things, or by dooming/benefiting a nation or even the entire world! You can’t avoid the Volcano forever. (don’t fret, there are ways to reverse or become immune to certain Volcanic activities.) It is all randomized and unbiased, anything can happen really.
Nation Name: National Flag: What do you call the denizens(ex. Americans come from America, Israelites comes from Israel): Government type: Leader/Leaders: Ruling factions/dynasty if applicable: Other Important political figures: Currency: State Religion(If applicable):
Demographics and Geography
World map location:
Interior map:
Major cities Major military installments: Important locations and buildings: Capital:
Population: Race and Ethnic demographic:
Economy(how well is it?): Wealth balance(is it concentrated solely on the aristocracy, such as in feudalism, balanced, high level of poor, optional): Major exports: Major Imports: Staple agricultural crops: Trade partners:
Culture
Religion demographics: Religious heads:
Popular opinion on the volcano: Popular opinion on wars: Popular opinion on magic: Popular opinion on religion: (pious?) Popular opinion on the Aristocracy: Pauper opinion on the Government: Popular opinion on foreigners: Popular opinion on other cultures:
Cultural name for the Volcano: (what do your people call it)
A look into the unique culture: (tell us what makes your average citizen unique, take us through their values and life style, throw in any sub cultures such as the culture of the formal classes as well)
Cultural history:
Notable figures:
Military and History
Type of Military: Volunteer, conscripted, standing, semi professional, culture affects, levies etc. Go into detail. Total Military fighting units:
Unit demographics: (heavy infantry, marksman, etc and their equipment/training)
Notable figures:
Past wars and notable events:
Past conflicts with other nations:
Current conflicts and wars:
Other
Artifacts and famous enchantments:
Anything else we should all know:
OOC rough draft, more to come! Ask questions! PM me, or find me Here. (accepting single characters)
PM ME ALL SHEETS FOR ACCEPTANCE!!!!!
Combat will be handled a few different ways:
For player combat, I leave it up to you to be fair and not god mod or be super epic 360 kickass never get hurt #rekt.
Small story driven combat, I expect the same, as well with isolated incidents.
Major battles between players and nations can be handled one of two ways:
One: I can trust you both to figure it out story wise and write it like any other post with the utmost realism in the matter as you two collaborate to write the battle out (I will step in if needed)
Hello,
So regarding large battles (nation battles) pitted between players or even NPC's/GM: it has been brought to my attention that there could be another way of doing them besides collaboration and I wanted to see everyone’s opinion, if you all decide not to go with it: I will leave it on the table as an option in case you want to try it out, or prefer it.
Here it is:
Players work out battles by taking on the role of the relevant general/authority. The will GM send a PM with the internal map, showing local topography and the starting position of units. Then players replied with their moves (still role playing the general/authority so try and do what they would do)
After both had replied, GM arbitrated the result and then repeat till battle's over. Simple enough.
Here are some visuals for you guys as examples:
Gm initiating:
Player reply:
When the Giants meet in the center, their leaders looks over their number, then turns his head toward the hill. He spits a bloody wad of saliva onto the ground, and screams with a raised fist. The men scream with him, and charge toward the hill. The running of the Giants is like a dozen bolts of thunder every second. They spread out around the hill, until they have completely surrounded it, and charge toward it, weapons raised, eyes wide, mouths frothing. In this time, your horse archers and longbowmen were able to get three volleys off, killing 90, and wounding 97, with your longbowmen mostly focusing on the western flank. The deaths of their comrades do not shake them in the slightest. They move up the hill at frightening pace, and meet the pikemen's bristle at the top. The western flank has been thinned significantly, and the pikemen are able to fend off the first wave expediently, but the eastern flank have a more difficult time in fending off the enemy. As the men could not run even if they desired to, the fight continues, your men growing more and more desperate to survive with each death of their own number. Though they kill many Giants, the eastern flank is eventually broken through, and the longbowmen continue the fight in a brutal melee slog. Eventually, even the enemy leader, clearly frustrated by the lack of progress, attempts to join the fray, but is quickly shot dead by one of your horse archers. After a horrendous battle, only a number of the Giant's grunts remain, and with their leader dead, and no easy victory in sight, they attempt to retreat, losing even more of their men in the process. When the dust settles, your men collapse in exhaustion, and bask in surreal disbelief at their continued existence. The tactical choices made today won the battle, though at heavy cost. In total of the battle, your Horse Archers lost 12 of their horses, 5 of their men, and have 11 wounded. Your Pikemen lost 152, and have 154 wounded. Your longbowmen have 91 dead, and 111 wounded. Your wounded men may recover if given treatment immediately. The enemy losses comprise 307 of their spearmen dead, and 314 wounded. Their 200 braves were killed to-the-man. Their horse archers lost 9 of their horses, 39 of their men, and have 53 wounded. The enemy wounded lie scattered across the battlefield. If given treatment, they may survive, and might make fine slaves, but you could also kill them, or simply leave them here to die.
After the battle is over, players can also then write up the post for the IC as a story driven (the usual kind of posts we do) from the perpective of someone in the battle as well as post the PM results in a summary; that way we will have both the story collab of things (how we normally do it) as well as the technical details of the battle, including unit types and numbers. Although as you saw the pm's portrayed a rather fine amount of story telling itself, so that may not be necessary.
Concerning unit types and heros(notable characters): Each nation has it's own unique form of levies and soldiers and I will take it into consideration obviously, as awell as the position and potential of any heros that are in the battle.
Concerning Artifacts: You can create one or two lesser artifacts for your nation, all other artifacts are volcanic artifacts (there are 32 of the mcurrenty) that will be revealed by the volcano periodically allowing players to take this objects of extreme power.
Volcano artifacts that are not revealed are subject to change, as is this list. If any issue arises regarding an artifact, I will decide a solution which may involve dismissing an artifact from the game should it be required.
-Gloves of Thunder’s Clap (Gauntlets that emit powerful blasts of thunder, useful for forcing the tide of a battle)
-Strange book “The D’sastr” (A book as large as a small child and three times as heavy, who knows what will happen when you peek inside its ancient rune covered pages. We know whosoever touches this book will remain immune to all magic, boons, curses, and such just as its pages are so long as you hold it)
-The Volcano’s ear (strange stone porous sea shell, said to hold the Volcano’s voice (get a true favor roll) Mr. Stabby (Formally Sir Steele, a talkative blade of yore, ripe with information and terrible jokes)
-Horn of the Bannik (Blow this and your battle is as good as won)[Dissolves after use]
-The Enlightened Tablets (Three wax tablets written in a dead language, it is said to read one reverses a boon or curse[includes conditions] of choice that the Volcano had performed, three in total)
-The Volcano’s eye (a small swirling orb of scarlet laced on a necklace string, it is said beneath its glossy surface holds the truth)[Receive unique dream, requesting for wearer to become the Volcano’s champion/immunity to Volcano], (receive all Aura’s while wearing it, true favor roll)
-The Volcano’s fist (a massive hammer that is incredulously light to its holder, but fatally heavy on its victim. Said to crush even the mightiest armors. Volcano’s Fist > Volcano’s body)
-The Volcano’s body (a suit of stone, articulate and as light as your own skin, yet few weapons can shake its defenses)
-The Volcano’s heart ( A pulsing fist sized stone fitted on a brass ring, its holder is immune to poisons and illness, and heals incredibly fast [even supposed unhealable wounds, such as missing limbs], but more interestingly... is its desire to unite with the other “parts” of the Volcano. Volcano’s heart > Sinister sting, Grant Mortal Grace (the next thing that would kill you doesn't))
-The Sinister Sting (a thin dagger the length of a forearm, its puncture is rarely survivable, but cannot bypass armor)
-The Noble Knife (The sinister sting’s brother, a short sword fit for combat. It’s blade can saw through the mightiest armors, and its strike is deadly. However it cannot harm the unarmed or the unarmored. Noble Knife > Volcano’s body)
-The Anvil of Living Rock (with the right supplies, an army of Golems could be yours)
-The Golden Apple (Revives a dead Player character… or historical figure)
-Void colored dice (they click and clatter, and when they land still, a curse falls upon a chosen character)(one use)
-Brimstone! (a monsterous machine birthed in the fires of the volcano. It is the size of a battering ram, and belches sulfur and orbs of stone at whatever stands in its way)
-Shkkaak’s Razor (a sickly red blade, serrated and wicked. It’s crimson blade saps the life of its victims and releases the stolen power into the body of the wielder. Some even say the wielder receives some demonic help from extramundane servants)
-Marmon’s Copper (a coin with a secret name written along its edges. Those who keep the coin in their pocket have the ability to render themselves invisible by whispering the name.)
-Sun’s tear (a strange peach colored gem the size of a melon. Sure you could sell it for a hefty price, but the fact that it doubles the agriculture output of its home nation, and potentially increasing army and economy sizes by a leap makes it more valuable in your own hands)
-Draught of Derrix (A vial of strange liquid, captured in a crystal bottle. It is said that whomever drinks it shall be healed of whatever ails them)
-The Monkey’s Pants (A pair of stylish trousers, the character that wears them gets a random Aura. One random aura roll per character, Auras last only as long as the pants are worn.)
- Horn of Roland (A horn that shatters once blown, but its mighty call is said to double the size of your army for the battle it roars over)
- Dream catcher (protects a character from Volcano dreams)
- The Defender’s Bulwark (An intimidating suit of full plate armor complete with a vented visor. Its wearer is immune to all physical attacks, and even disease. The wearer cannot attack while wearing this armor, and if he/she does, it will harden and transform into a statue, with the wearer frozen in the stone.)
- Hangman’s Conscience (Whosoever holds this rope shall be tempted to kill themselves, as if you had a choice)
- Spirit’s Window (A small mirror that allows the user to converse with the dead. The dead are not compelled to speak with the user or be truthful)
- The Covenant (A pair of rings intended to be worn by two different individuals, the Covenant forces those who wear it to follow any agreements that they have made with each other. Once the agreement is fulfilled, the two rings will appear together in a random place) (could have been worded better, but I suspect you get the point)
-Warmaiden’s Lust (A ring that once worn cannot be removed, besides severing the finger, It gender swap’s any male that wears it. The strength of the ring is dependent on how much blood, originating from a female, the wearer comes into contact with on a regular basis. At it’s strongest, bathing entirely in blood, the wearer gains the charisma and extrasensory auras. At its worst, basically zero contact, the wearer receives the hated and weak auras. The blood fed to the ring must be that of a female other than oneself, and replenished every two weeks… we were going to go with once a month, but… well you get the joke)
I'm interested but I'd like to know what's going on with that political map.
Hatched ocean is inhabited by Merpeople, northern plains cluster is a large number of tribes under the control of two players, little jungle island at the rivers is volcano as of yet unmarked.
@Sagacity friendly reminder, I requested all ns to be pmed to me for acceptance before posting in the cs tab. Thanks man. (I'll look over it from the cs tab because it's already there now)
(I'm posting this public just incase anyone else missed that request, it's no buggy, just an organization preference.)
To be fair, claiming the Volcano would probably get you destroyed by a rockslide or something.
Or other fun things! Also, while it isn't claimable, it is capturable in game. I mean, if the two main religions want to oversee the flow of magic or the politicians want to control the flow of power, why not at the juicy source?
Here's the religion that reveres nature and the volcano. I've left it fairly open to interpretation so there can be a variety of denominations and the like.
Ilinucism is an ancient faith that worships the earth itself as a living deity. The world-mother, also known as Aketa, is the mother of all things in the world, living and nonliving. Ilinucism has many denominations which all of which hold the same core beliefs. Perhaps the most important of these beliefs is that when any living thing is born, Aketa blesses it with a portion of her soul, thus blessing it with the gift of life. When a living being dies its soul becomes one with Aketa. The volcano is a holy place, Aketa’s mouthpiece by which she speaks to her children. It is a place to be shared with all of the faithful. Those capable of using magic are seen as saints who have been blessed with an abnormally large amount of Aketa’s soul. They are superior people who should lead their brothers and sisters in their mothers’, Aketa’s, name.
