If the tournament idea gets going or we decide to have drinking contests, or archery contests, or something like that.
Just another aspect of RPing, taking the certainty of victory away and allowing for some random chance.
In the game this setting is based on some of the most interesting stuff happens when your plans go awry.
Alain the Old Tournament Fighter hoping for one last jousting victory ends up losing to Cheggog, big shot with the Khuzait Horse Tribes. He retires to the tavern to drink away his woes only to hear Cheggog is looking for him. Cheggog admires his horsemanship, his horse, and his dignity in defeat. He offers him a job riding with them, teaching them what he knows about The Empire.
Or Galvain the Sturgian Viking Badass Mercenary fights on the losing side against an Aserai Lord and is captured. He treads along with them in captivity through the desert until he sees an opportunity to make a break for it. He escapes, but soon passes out from dehydration and the heat. The Aserai Lord recaptures him. More stuff happens.
Gather Your Banners : A Brief Respite from War (And A Good Place to Start RPing, Hopefully)
General Purpose:
A Medieval setting for RPing with enough history to give folks ideas for characters but enough freedom to allow for mostly whatever. A large gathering consisting of the canon nations of the game Mount and Blade Bannerlord (Don't worry, I'll explain) and perhaps some folks from farther off lands.
A celebration of a new but very appreciated peace on the continent. There will be Taverns and Tournaments. Bartering and Brawls. Politicking and Probably Other Stuff That Starts With A P.
Advanced Writers please feel free to regale us with tales of your heroes and have them seek an audience with the Emperor. Do pretty much whatever within the standard RPG General Decent Bloke rules.
Casual or Skittish Writers please feel free to do the exact same, or if you're more comfortable with it just have a character settling into a tavern to try to find out what is going on in town. Perhaps join a tournament, this is peace time so they're using blunted weapons and trying to avoid any of the unpleasantries that pop up when someone or other's brother gets his head detached from his shoulders.
General Approach:
The Rules are pretty much bog standard. Stuff no one should have to list.
1- Don't be terrible to each other. 2- Don't control someone else's character. 3- Don't dismiss or ignore someone else's writing. 4- Don't make a Mary/Gary Stu. Your character is not perfect. Perfect is for bad Fan Fiction not RPing. 5- Don't smut it up. Fade to black or take it to PMs. If you're good send me the PMs. I'm kidding. Unless you're really good.
The only rule really that's a little not bog standard is one that may not even come into play, it is this...
6- Tournaments. If you want to actually RP out a fight you and your opponent either need to come to an agreement on who wins or we treat it similarly to how the Arena here functions. You guys RP it out for a bit and I, or someone you both agree to, determines who wins. Or if you want to fight we could just use the Dice Roll function here to determine who wins. These fights aren't to the death and there's no shame in losing. It can be fun for character development. Just make sure that both you and your opponent are having a good time, that is the only point of RPing.
- What You Need To Know -
Today marks the halfway point of the Fourth Year of Peace in Calradia, a continent with a long history of war. It is also a celebration of the Fifteenth Birthday of the Princess Ira, only child of Arencios the Wise, Emperor of Calradia.
From across the continent and beyond peoples once at war, some still with long simmering resentments, have come together for many reasons. From each nation they come to assess old enemies and to kindle those very same long burning resentments. They come to seek alliances. They come to make connections in far off lands that might benefit their trading caravans. They come to marry off their sons and daughters and strengthen their family name. They come to see this great Emperor and bring him their gifts, their requests, or their curses.
They come to fight in the great tournaments, for fortune, for fame, for booze, for women, or because they saw no other plausible way to improve their station. Some just came for the food. Perfectly valid reason.
Led by Arcenios the Wise. Largely Roman based. Think Skyrim Imperials if that's easier. Center of the Map, Center of the World, Doing Big Things. The North is the Seat of the Senate. The West is the home of the Emperor, Emperess, and the Princess. The South is the seat of Military power.
Strong alliances with other nations. Central position. A lot of land under their control. A well respected leader. The Empire is currently the dominant culture in the area.
Moderately Hierarchy Based. Not Easy to move from poor to rich or to move from commoner to noble. Upward Movement based on membership in Senate, Marriage, Distinguish Service, or Potentially Extreme Wealth/Influence
Strengths: Most developed power. Hold very lush lands in a central location. Extremely versatile in war. Highly developed troops at highest tier of promotion. Excellent armor means high troop survival rates. Access to archers, infantry, and cavalry. Large land holdings mean lots of willing recruits.
Weaknesses: Long process for promotion. Junior troops vulnerable to cavalry. Surrounded by opposing factors, villages on frontier vulnerable to exploitation in war.
Led by King Derthert. Heavy Cavalry, Big Armor, King Arthury Big Tough Knights. Old Blood. History and Power. Recently at war with The Empire. Some lesser Lords run Mercenary companies.
Very Hierarchy Based - Very Difficult to move from poor to rich or to move from commoner to noble. Upward Movement based on Blood or a Combination of Distinguished Service and Wealth/Influence.
Strong bloodline alliances. A lot of camaraderie amongst the Lords of the lands. Feared and respected Heavy Cavalry makes Vlandia, and particularly that Heavy Cavalry itself, a nation it is very difficult to take land from.
Strengths: Powerful lancer cavalry, both from Noble Families and the Peasantry Well-trained and Well-Equipped Crossbowmen Extensive use of Polearms Strong Economically and Densely settled When at peace with The Empire exposed to threats only from Battania and Sturgia through the North East.
Weaknesses: No Horse Archers at all Focus on Crossbows rather than Bows means harder hitting but less agile long-distance fighting. Cavalry requires more upkeep, reliance on Cavalry means high costs.
Led by King Caladog. Excellent Archers. Woods. Sneaky buggers. Think Irish/Scottish/Welsh Resistance to the English Throne. Recently at war with The Empire. Once controlled much of the continent, defend their current borders fiercely.
Not Very Hierarchy Based. Nut much resistance to moving from poor to rich or to moving from commoner to noble. Upward Movement based on Distinguished Service or Demonstration of Leadership Ability.
Long history. Long memory. Backed into a corner Battania is very capable of defending its borders, and from a great range, and having become accustomed to the environment fights much more effectively amid the forests they dwell. Invaders face ample ambush opportunities.
Strengths: Extremely powerful Noblemen archers Falxmen use powerful weapons with very long reach Large Shields Battanian territory is largely highly condensed woods and very defensible
Weaknesses: Limited Cavalry. No Heavy Cavalry or Horse Archers. Not very versatile. Poorly armored. Surrounded by potential enemies. Weak economy.
Led by Prince Raganvad. Nords. Vikings. Snow. Axes. Big Swords. Sick Beards. Skol. Think any big bearded guy with an axe. Recently at war with The Empire.
Not Very Hierarchy Based. Nut much resistance to moving from poor to rich or to moving from commoner to noble. Upward Movement based on Distinguished Service or Demonstration of Leadership Ability.
A Warrior culture in the great white north. They have become accustomed to the high altitude, mountainous terrain, and frigid cold. This makes it easier for them to defend their borders but makes it more difficult for them if they venture too far South.
Strengths: Very powerful Heavy Infantry. Experienced Noblemen Shock Cavalry on par with other Heavy Cavalry Axes give a significant edge in melee and Sturgia has a lot of them. Mounted skirmishers provide an effective counter to cavalry.
Weaknesses: Mediocre archers. Lack of true mounted archers. Wide border, which can result in multiple wars fought on far away fronts.
Led by Prince Monchug. Confederation of Steppe Tribes. Horse Archers. Horse culture. Generally great on horses. Men and Women fairly equal. Hard to catch. Think Mongols. Long time ally of The Empire.
Not Very Hierarchy Based. Nut much resistance to moving from poor to rich or to moving from commoner to noble. Upward Movement based on Distinguished Service or Demonstration of Leadership Ability.
No one matches the sheer riding ability of a well-trained experienced Khuzait. It is said that with the proper horse and a quality saddle a Khuzait rider could outrun the sun. The reality is that on flat level ground a Khuzait horde is a nightmare to face in battle. Though they have difficulty taking land from others they excel at harassing and deterring invading forces.
Strengths: Born in the saddle, even small weaker armies have plentiful mounted archers and light cavalry. Well-rounded infantry, very adaptable. Ranged troops carry extra quiver allowing them to continue shooting longer. All Nobles are mounted, causing them to be hard to catch and quick to strike. Very Fast in travel.
Weaknesses: Smaller weaker armies do not have polearms, making the unmounted troops they do have vulnerable to cavalry. Small shields, veteran troops shields are durable but junior troops often use wicker shields. Specialization in Cavalry means they excel in one thing but if counter-acted they're in big trouble. Difficulty with Sieges, though a blockade can be very effective.
Led by Sultan Unqid. Footmen and Horsemen. Great traders. Masters of the deserts. Breed the best horses. Very civilized. Think Redguards from Skyrim or Lawrence of Arabia or Ottoman Empire. Long time ally of The Empire.
Not Very Hierarchy Based. Nut much resistance to moving from poor to rich or to moving from commoner to noble. Upward Movement based on Distinguished Service or Demonstration of Leadership Ability.
Masters of Trade. Masters of Horse Rearing. The best horses in the lands come from the Aserai peoples. While a Khuzait rider could likely catch them, given a quality horse, they would have to outwit them as well. In the desert lands the Aserai call home that is quite unlikely. The deserts of the Aserai are unforgiving, the Aserai know them well.
Strengths: Adaptable troops: Infantry and cavalry use throwing weapons, horse archers carry shields. Low tier troops possess polearms, making them useful against cavalry. Powerful archery units with top-tier weapons and arrows. All tiers of noble troops possess horses.
Weaknesses: Adaptability rather than specialization means someone does everything better than them. Poor quality of shields Weak Heavy Infantry and little protection offered from their helmets Reliance on high quality and therefore expensive horses.
A Khuzait Youth, traveling to show off his/her family's horses and his/her skills with them. An Aserai Trader, looking to make allies in Battania and Vlandia on the other side of the Empire to ensure safe and profitable routes. An Old Tournament Fighter, hoping to eek out one last Tournament victory and perhaps earn himself a spot training a next generation. A Sturgian Warrior, looking for a powerful family from whatever nation that might have a Bandit problem which needs fixing. A Vlandian Knight, joining the jousting tournaments to prove that none can best Vlandia. A Lord from Any Nation, seeking to restore his Family's Name so his children might have a better life than he. An Annoying Drunk, Short, Bearded, Asshole, stumbling in and out of all the taverns trying to get free drinks and company.
It was seven years ago that Arcenios was declared the Emperor of Calradia by the Senate. In those years he brought a fearful people besieged at all side up into prosperity and restored the reputation of The Calradic Empire. His victories in Battania, Sturgia, and Vlandia were celebrated without the torment of the vanquished. The folly of the previous Emperor was corrected and the lands taken were brought into the Empire rather than drained of their resources. Their cultures permitted to persist rather than being smothered. Arencios was respected both at home and abroad for his decisive leadership and uncommon empathy, but it was his absolute opposition to corruption that brought him admiration.
He did what so very few Emperors ever do. At his strongest, after a long and terribly successful campaign and when global conquest seemed all but certain to succeed, he disbanded the Imperial Legions. There would be no further grand campaigns. The Legions would return to their homes where their Archons would be responsible for their upkeep and the defense of their lands. Not all of the legionaries were happy about this, but the Empire as a whole was. Most of the continent was. He spent the next three and a half years traveling about The Empire, protected by his very own Vaegir Guardsman, working to solidify the hard fought peace. Finally, he returned to the place of his birth.
Arcenios returned to the South of The Empire, to the great fortress of Lycaron, to rest. He had much to celebrate.
Sounds good. I probably underestimate how powerful Arbites are. I know Astartes are like uber Gods. Will definitely have that tall tale idea. I love that.
Look look, call me a liar if you want but you'll see. I'm telling you man. He was like this tall. Big ass las. Killed fitty men. Said I was pretty damn tough for an Abhuman and he bought me a drink. Best night of my life. Aside from that one time on - hey...hey you're not listening.
Works well for me. I tend to like the mercenary sort anyway. Wee lil' man with a cigar and a Long Las. Trotting along on his wee lil legs shooting things and trying not to get shot. Maybe pair him with an Adeptus Arbites or two, or if that's too much some Underhive Gangers.
Perhaps take a look at the Contest Section if you want to do some writing to sort of create a resume for yourself.
Or perhaps a Casual RP thread in the vein of a bar or telling stories around a campfire. Or like Year 4427 1/3 Intergalactic Dating Profiles. I once had someone suggest a super power to me and used that as a writing prompt. Really anything to tell people a little about your interests, writing style, sense of humor, commonly used characters. All of that helps.
You might consider joining the Discord as well. A lot of users are active there, some more active there than here, and it has (I believe) two sections geared toward starting RPs and discussing potential RPs.
OR OR OR OR, hell, if you want start up a thread in the Arena section. It's pretty much dead as a doorknob. I've got a Halfling Wrestler ready to drop kick your knees outta your knees and a delusional self aggrandizing Muscle Man ready to pick you (or any other heavy object) up and drop you repeatedly until someone rings a bell and lifts his hand. I could do like a fantasy character too so long as you don't mind it being facking stupid.
I started here the same way. RPed for Something-teen years before my old forums were shut down. Came here. The transition can be awkward but this forum is well equipped for writing and has several great writers.
Look at JB, Apathy, and Poohead. And me of course.
I haven't seen all that much Lower Power Scale stuff, in regard to Magic, but I share your tastes. There are relatively often RPs set in the Elder Scrolls Universe, the Witcher Universe, and though I havent seen any for a bit the Warhammer Fantasy Universe. Hope you find what you're looking for.
Dale squinted his eyes taking in the new young woman who had arrived in town. Weird clothes. Hippie Van. Across the street from Hank.
"Goddamn night crawler that one." He said in a tone one might use when explaining a deep truth to a rapt audience.
"Goddamn FBI spying on us. Probably making sure we all take the 5G shots."
Still it was good to see a new face. Town was slowly growing. This one would turn Arlen into Austin if she's not a goddamn glow worm. Could never be too safe. He'd have to implement some counter intelligence measures. An extra layer of tin foil around the old Gribble PC, more cinder blocks in the living room, reach out to his connections on the Discords and the Tikki Toks and all that. They wouldn't take him easily, not even with all the doohickeys and whatchamacallits they had.
He'd play it cool.
"Probably saw Bobby's search history eh Hank? Boy ain't right."
I read a book once about medieval warfare, mostly swordsmanship and a little about bows and arrows and it struck me how interesting it might be to do an RP with a more grounded serious take on these things.
I don't really know enough to run one or participate very well in one, but this is a great guide to help folks ground their writing a little more. Even just fleshing out battles a little bit to show their characters tendencies.
Maybe a great army with a kinda shit leader who chooses poorly where to position his troops or maybe a great commander putting the right people in the right places to win a battle where they were significantly outnumbered
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.
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.
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
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
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.
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
Redacted
Score1
The Savant
Vixere
Red Hood
fledermaus
Sep
Pen Name
Carlyle
