BangoSkank

Bannerlord + Elder Scrolls = An RP Maybe

Short Pitch

Everyone loves Elder Scrolls right? Well what if it got mixed up with some Bannerlords? Wouldn't that be wacky? Give me money please.

Debating on Advanced/Casual, aiming more for Double High Casual
It really would work quite well in Casual though. Playing as a lower ranked character like a soldier or a mercenary or a trader wouldn't require long deliberate posts while playing as a high ranking member of one of the Nations would.

My idea is relatively simple but it could go in a lot of directions so I'm looking to gauge Interest for the RPing and see if anyone would be interested in helping sort of brainstorm plan it out. I liked the way that little guide thing from like two years ago was a collaborative effort and this idea can't work in practice without collaboration so why not collaborate with the world building too.

Simple:

Elder Scrolls has interesting races. Everyone knows Elder Scrolls. Everyone likes Elder Scrolls.

Bannerlord has dull races but interesting civilizations. Not a lot of people know Bannerlord. A lot of people would like Bannerlord.

Why not try to lean into the strengths of both and create an RP out of their joyous union?

I'm not an expert lore student with tomes of rarified knowledge. My handle on CHIM isn't sufficient yet that it has led me to question my madness and dream of strange cities below the sea, of entering the waters and never leaving, of an unfathomable knowing dwelling somewhere in the outer cosmos with no regard for the doings of man. I don't know everything about Bannerlord either but I know a bit about both and I have Wiki and you guys, hopefully, to flesh it all out. Or throw it out because its garbage and make something better I can take credit for in the future.

BASIC IDEA

All open to change, this is just a basic explanation of how I see it fitting. It does largely cut out the Elves...we'd have to figure out how to fit them back in probably. I'd be down for Kingdoms of Man and Beasts but I know a lot of folks love the Elves. Dark Elves in particular. They so sexy though.

Tamriel Map

Bannerlord Map

Northern Empire - Seat of Power: Senate believes they should pick next leader
Southern Empire - War: General believes veterans should pick next leader
Western Empire - Traditional: Believe previous King's son should be heir to the throne
Vlandia - Nords, slightly tamed by vicinity to Bretons and Imperials
Sturgians - Orcs
Khuzaits - Khajit
Battanians - Bretons
Aserai - Redguard

Elder Scrolls - Imperials
Bannerlord - Empire

MASH EM UP

Elder Scrolls Imperials are largely the center of the world. Similarities to Rome. Mercantile. Speechcraft. Politics. Kinda dicks.
Bannerlord Empire are largely the center of the world. Similarities to Rome. Mercantile, Speechcraft and Politics kind of bloom from that.

Take a group whose leader is, or at least is believed to be, an aspect of a God and all the good jolly fun that could come with that. Being in the center leads to some obvious advantages and some obvious disadvantages. You can trade with near everyone, you can also be attacked by near everyone. You also have members of near every other nation living in your nation and providing you with doubtless the most diverse populace in the world, but during a war that may prove a liability if their loyalties are altered.

Comes, courtesy of Bannerlord, either as three smaller groups you could control one of or as one big group with a distinct and dire problem to solve.

The Emperor is old and decrepit and he smells like salty eggs, and not in the good way.

The Northern Empire, the metropolitan Seat of the Senate, believes that it is time the Empire become more Democratic and who better to hold the reins, I mean rule with reason and empathy, than the Senate itself. They're protected from major threats by the bulk of the Empire to their South and to their West.

The Western Empire, near two groups the Empire has long had a stable peace with, is more traditional and believes that the way things have always been run is the way things ought to be run. It has carried them this far has it not? Headed up by the ailing Emperor and still quite young, healthy, and hot Emperess they hold that rule be passed down to the heir.

The Southern Empire, near a desert and a tundra, has long been heavily involved in the rearing, training, and command of the Empire's military. Led, though unofficially for now, by a famed General they hold that it is veterans who ought to decide the next Emperor. It was by their hand that the Empire was able to expand its borders. It is by their hand that it does defend those borders. Why should their hands be kept from the reins?

Can the center hold? Can the Empire weather this storm and see itself into a new form or retain its traditions? Will they be able to keep their citizens from a neighboring nation happy while going to war with that nation? Might they be able to take an even bigger slice of the pie and expand their borders ever outward?

Elder Scrolls -Nords
Bannerlord - Vlandia

MASH EM UP

Elder Scrolls Nords are big shouty dudes from the Northern Mountains who swing big axes and big swords and really don't need a jacket. Kinda dicks to other groups. Great in an army. Hearty as hell.

Bannerlord Vlandians are a feudal state that focuses on cavalry, which isn't a great fit, but the area they occupy is perfect and it would work quite well as a Nord-like that has been affected by changing borders and cross-cultural development between themselves, the Battanian/Bretons to the North-East and the Empire to the East. Similar to an Elder Scrolls Nord group that had been exposed to the Empire for a good long while. Big Nordy dudes with armor, enjoying a long peace but spending much of it sharpening their swords and hammers. Well blunting their hammers.

Will the call for pillage and slaughter ring again? Will they be fully subsumed by The Empire? Will they go to war with Battania and get themselves some nifty bows? Will they lie in wait for one of the other factions to become weak and then go loot the shit out of them? What is best in life? To see your foes driven before you? To hear the lamentations of their women?

I've written up explanations for my thinking in regard to the Empire/Imperials and their subfactions as well as for Vlandia/Nords. I'll do more writing tomorrow and try to get a better explanation of what changes these meldings would bring and why I think they're good choices.

A big, relatively obvious, weakness of my current thinking is the absence of Argonians and all forms of Elves. This could either be explained as a time before the Elves, or there just aren't any Elves in this version, or by incorporating the Elves into other groups.

Perhaps the High Elves exist in Vlandia, with the Nords, having been the reason for them being relatively tamed and for Vlandia having not been taken over by the much larger Empire.
Perhaps the Wood Elves exist in Battania, with the Bretons, hiding in the dense forests and teaching the Bretons how to use bows so well.
Perhaps the Dark Elves exist in Aserai, with the Redguards, or in the Khuzait Kingdom, with the Khajit. Either would fit them relatively well being more barren unpleasant surroundings as was Morrowind and placing the Dark Elves in a rather rough predicament as they often seem to find themselves.

I don't have any good ideas for Argonians really. Perhaps just swallowed up,culturally, entirely by the Empire. Perhaps hunted to extinction long ago. Perhaps living in secret in the marshlands of the Empire.

Themes: Why This Would Be Cool

Nation Conflicts
Faction Conflicts with a Nation
Losing a Battle Can Mean Winning a War
Not Leading Your Men Into a Certain Slaughter Is Probably Smart
Sometimes Retreat Is Appropriate
War Sucks A Lot of Ass
Things could change pretty quickly to breathe some new life into things if we get into a lull in posting

How to Write as a Nation?

You might also divide your writing up between different characters with different views on goings on in your country. And that might mean having multiple political parties in your country. Maybe two-four as in America (although only really two with any power) or maybe many as in some European countries.

Ex.

The President. Perhaps being stifled by an opposing party that is managing to delay him in fulfilling his promises. Perhaps that is being stifled by division in his own party. Perhaps enjoying, at least as the story begins, widespread support from a bipartisan majority of his country.

Reporter. Perhaps uncovering government corruption. Perhaps enthusiastically reporting on a country recovering from previous hardships. Perhaps warning that The President is making big mistakes. Perhaps a middle ground reporter getting gradually dragged to one side or another. Perhaps reporting on rogue groups.

Rogue Groups. Perhaps a well intentioned one with plausible explanations for why they seek to undermine The President. Perhaps a plainly hostile power hungry group looking to undermine or depose The President. Perhaps a group that supports The President and wants to suppress opposing parties opposing that President, either peacefully or not or somewhere in between.

Soldiers. Perhaps eager for The President to announce war with a country the military suspects will soon act against them. Perhaps hopeful they will be allowed to intercede on another countries behalf or support an allied country already engaged in war with a mutual enemy. Perhaps hopeful that The President won't stoke the flames of war.

You could also always use common citizens or politicians to get deeper views.

You expressed not wanting to make a Nationalists wet dream, often the best way to represent a dystopia is to explain why it's not a utopia. You could always RP a reformer. Yes, he's the Ambassador of Nationalismistan but you can have him trying to make Nationalismistan a place worthy of pride. Perhaps his vision of Nationalismistan has -insert preferred policies here- and has completely eliminated -insert distasteful policies here-

Naming an RP

I like to use impactful words or phrases and then an explanation of the setting. Like, probably, my favorite PC game.

Fallout : A Post Apocalyptic RPG

So your Interest Check could be

We Were Only Going Fishing...and then something to indicate what you're thinking in vague terms. Phrasing it that way indicates that either something unexpected happened or something meaningful happened. Maybe it's a woman talking about the time her boyfriend took her out fishing and became her fiancé. Maybe it's a story about some folks being mistaken for a pair of serial killers because they were driving the same type of car. Maybe it's an Isekai.

We Were Only Going Fishing : A Rural Slice of Life

Or

We Were Only Going Fishing The Day The Aliens Landed

Or

We Were Only Going Fishing : Character Development

Or

We Were Only Going Fishing : Create Your Own Adventure

Even just "We Were Only Going Fishing" works if you then explain a bit about what you're looking to do. Is it characters telling each other stories. Is it friends killing time because work sucks. Is it the first time some friends have come together since Covid. Is it set in modern times in the real world. Is it set in a fantasy world during a Great War or a 50 year long time of peace.

Video Games: The General Discussion & Community Thread Number Two

I think I like Astarion mostly just because I'm curious what his deal is. Might like Gale better next time. Don't think I had him in my party but he does look cool as fuck in promotional materials

Video Games: The General Discussion & Community Thread Number Two

Which one do you like @TGM?

I liked Astarion, Shadowheart, and Lae'zel.

King of the Hill: Boiled Mountain Dew Electric Boogaloo II

Dale shook his head. Bill had designs on Peggy and he didn't even know. The man was blind and if he wasn't careful sooner or later another man would have his way with Hanks wife. Embarrassing.

"You know," Dale said halfway between deciding between finishing his cigarette and lighting another or finishing his beer and going home to boil a fresh batch of Mountain Dew.

"Hank, maybe Ol' Peggy could take up Yoga with my Nancy. Peg ain't getting any younger and that Redcorn he's got one of them Indian Cloth Pyramid things he uses. Gets all kinds of steamy in there. Gotta be a good workout. Nancy always comes back sweaty and tired and goes straight to sleep. Doesn't even stop me from watching my X-Files boxset."

Video Games: The General Discussion & Community Thread Number Two

It's made by the folks who made DoS2 so yep. Similar presentation, similar party. D&D classes and races and world.

Watch a video or two on it. I don't know shit all about D&D, as anyone who has played it with me can attest, and I still took to it pretty quick.

Video Games: The General Discussion & Community Thread Number Two

It's available in Early Access.

I've already bought it and played through the Early Access part once.

Great writing. Interesting characters. Definite replayability.

I just hope Half Orc makes it in along with some more classes. Barbarian, Paladin, Monk, maybe a Bar Brawler kind of subclass for Fighter

Video Games: The General Discussion & Community Thread Number Two

DoS2 is a lot of fun.

Baldurs Gate 3 when it eventually hits full release should be amazing.

Maybe try Disco Elysium too. I haven't tried that yet as I don't have the spare time I used to but it looks great.

A pleasure to make your acquaintance.

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