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Word Syndrome [fantasy, mystery, modern, detective(?)]

Guilty Spark said 1) How often are Representatives elected?

Every three years.

Guilty Spark said 2) Political groups have their own territories?

Yes, political groups have their own territories.
The current problem of the groups is that they are more in number and have fewer members and supporters. With the right to form your own group and defend your interests publicly, many of the people, who consider themselves "a mix", have formed their own little circles. This creates a weak uneven power distribution. The top three at present were the first to be founded and thus have an established reputation and members. The rest are smaller and still have many steps to climb.
Another problem that arises with the number of political groups is when there is more than one group in a district.
If there are two political groups in one district and one claims to be defending only a part of the district's inhabitants, then the district gets split into two areas and each group reports for its area. However, if both political groups claim to be defending the entire district's inhabitants (and such is the case in the majority of times), both need to submit reports for their district. In the latter case, if one report should contradict the other, the leaders of both parties will be called by the mayor and it will be decided whether to have an open debate on the matter or open a poll for the residents to give their opinion.
Due to the higher number of political groups, quarrels between them are daily broadcasted on television. Of course, there is rarely any violence and the case gets closed after a short period of barking at each other. (Ah, I see this so often on television.)

Guilty Spark said What happens when one falls out of the top three (or suffer any shift in their ranking, really)?Does their territory suffer any consequences?

After the votes from the Voting day have been accounted for, if a political party has more down-votes than up-votes, a team of investigators is tasked to discover if the voting was not a fraud, schemed by another political group. Simultaneously, detectives are given the order to investigate the members with the most negative opinion. If the voting was not a fraud, none of the political group's suggestions, requests or the like will be accepted by the council, regardless of their content, for a year. If the political party scores miserably three years in a row, it is disbanded.
Of course, the people the political party is meant to represent can also file a complain and request against the group, which can be accepted by the council.

Guilty Spark said 3) The Political Group voting system, particularly the down-voting ability, seems exploitable. Couldn't, with the appropriate organization, voters target key group members? Perhaps it would be better if only members of that Political Group could down-vote, or something similar. So that their interests are protected from external tampering. Or only people residing within their area, or something.

The law states that the voting must be done honestly and without prejudice, but what is life without a little corruption? A wonderful place, in my opinion, but Oblak City is in no paradise world. People lie and bad things, such as buying votes, happen. It's the police's job to stop those misdeeds, not mine. ;)

If a member of a political group, who has thus far had good results, suddenly gets a plummeting score, they have the right to object and call for an investigation.

Guilty Spark said 4) Given that they hold legislative and executive power, I imagine the Council has created a lot of bureaucratic organizations and "Federal Departments" to delegate the responsibility of carrying out laws to? Are these hypothetical bureaucracies malleable? Changing often, or remaining stagnant? And, finally (for now), I imagine they have Ministers/Administrators/Department Heads as well?

...And here I thought I still had 11 days until school. XD

Not, there's no real need for them, in my opinion, seeing as this isn't an incredibly large country, but a mere independent city. The affairs commonly handled by the ministers or federal departments are done by the council.

You seem acquainted with the system, Guilty Spark. That is at least my impression. Do feel free to give me your suggestions, if you have any. I would like a helping hand when it comes to these matters. =3

Word Syndrome [fantasy, mystery, modern, detective(?)]

It's 1 AM at night and even though there is probably more to add here, I'll leave it as it is for tonight. Guilty Spark, if you believe I have missed something, do point it out and, if you have any ideas on the system, do feel free and give me your suggestions. While I am no stranger to politics, I am also not close and personal with them. X3

answer

The political system of the miktiopilis is relatively simple. Allow me to begin with defining Ambassadors and Representatives.

Ambassadors are elected by the head of their country, a president or a monarch.
Representatives are elected by the people. They can take up their position, if their country holds a share in the miktiopolis, that is to say that the country in question has somehow contributed to the development of the city, or if a nationality is seven thousand or more in number in the miktiopolis.
In the first case, both residents of the miktiopolis and the country are allowed to vote for the representative, however, only those of the same nationality as the country can vote.
An example would be that only Germans can vote for a German representative.
In the second scenario, only the residents of the miktiopolis are allowed to vote for their representative.
When it comes to who can become a representative, they must and foremost either have been born in the miktiopolis or to have lived there for more than five years. In addition, they must have finished a second level of higher education in one of the branches of law, politics or science. Rather than form political parties, every person, who is of the correct nationality, submits a request to be included in the voting lists. From then on, the people vote and whoever has the most votes becomes the representative.

Both ambassadors and representatives form what we may call a council and in this council’s hands is the power of what we know of as the legislative and executive branch. They create, propose, accept and deny laws, as well as public projects. They manage the miktiopolis’s energetics, economy, transport, infrastructure, education, finance, environment. Each of them is allowed to vote on a matter they are discussing. The votes are, for the most part, equal, except when international affairs and the budget are involved. They host daily meetings in the King’s Castle area, where they carry out their debates and discussions on different topics. When it comes to the miktiopolis’s security, the council will discuss matters that affect the entire city’s safety, however, the Department of Oblak Guardians is not directly under their control.

The Department of Oblak Guardians is under the control of “the mayor”, a person who is elected every four years.
The mayor only controls the police, holds a place in court as second only to the Supreme judge and has the final say in whether or not a country will be allowed to become a shareholder. They are not a part of the council, because law states that they must have been born in the miktiopolis and must consider themselves “a mix” or “undefined nationality”.
The choice of one’s nationality comes when they become of legal age and must have an identification card. A person, who is under “undefined nationality” and has finished higher education in law or politics, can enter political groups.

Political groups, or “the mixers” as they are referred to, can only be composed of miktiopolis-born people of “undefined nationality”. Ideologies may vary greatly from group to group. The current top three are the Conservative party, the Democratic Union and the Movement of Freedom (nationalists).
Members of these groups are upvoted or downvoted every year by citizens, who also consider themselves as “mixed”. Each person is given two opportunities to vote - once for and once against any member. Different political groups have different “Voting days” and members of the community can vote in this fashion for every group. When the voting is complete, depending on the number of voters, members who have scored poorly are expelled from the organization.
During the year of mayor elections, each political party proposes their top member for mayor and every person from any nationality has the right to vote.
If necessary, the mayor has the right to call a referendum on any matter the council is discussing.
Other than the stated above, political groups have the right to submit projects and suggestions of any kind (even laws) to the council, but have no say in whether or not they will be accepted. By law their duty is to be the voice of the people of mixed heritage, who in number are greater than any nationality in the miktiopolis. The groups are meant to send reports regarding the well-being of citizens and the city itself, noting if anything requires repair, if there is a need for new buildings or a shortage of workers or specialists. Depending on where their headquarters are located, the group should report for their area alone, yet is allowed to signal for other areas if deemed necessary. There is nowhere in the law, however, that obliges the political groups to send these reports, thus many neglect this duty.

The Judicial branch can be divided into two categories: Supreme Court and Area Court.
Each district has a court, where local crimes are judged.
The Supreme court is held at King’s Castle and is responsible for handling major cases, such as serial killers, abuse of power, political treason, etc. , yet also supervises all twenty four area courts. There are three main figures in the Supreme court: the Supreme Judge, the Mayor and the Supreme Bailiff.

As for international affairs, that may be a bit tricky.
First of all I should note that, while representatives have a top priority of defending the wishes of their nationality within the confines of the miktiopolis, the ambassadors’s sole duty is to defend the interests of their country. Ofttimes, if not always, they join hands with the representatives of their country and thus the two become the face of their country.
In the miktiopolis, while it is allowed to govern itself on the surface, different countries are always pulling the strings and competing with each other underground. The high of a percentage a shareholder has, the more influence they will have when deciding international affairs, such as trade, granting permission for projects of other countries and accepting or declining potential shareholders; as well as how the budget should be handled.
Due to the fact that Oblak City is surrounded by Russian territory, Russia has no intention of allowing North American influence to spread, with the threat of information leaks and anti-russian ideology and activity. However, they could not stop the USA from becoming a shareholder, seeing as they were among the first to agree to a miktiopolis being built in the Southern Federation.
With America growing in percentage, Russia seeks an alliance with Japan. However, both the Japanese on the island and those in Oblak City are torn apart by the Americans and Russians, who offer them partnership. Although the Japanese attempt to remain neutral, they are currently in a dangerous position and both Mr. Tatsuo and Mrs.Satoru have not only once been pressured into helping one of the sides.
The Chinese, on the other hand, are faring better. With their low, yet stable percentage, they remain a loyal ally to Russia, yet most of their products are bought by Americans, with many Americans visiting Chinatown daily, thus they are positioned in a “safe zone”.
The Germans and British remain on the sidelines, trying to neutralise the “warring camps”, however, while the first strive to maintain their neutrality, the british representative and ambassador side more often with the Russian party than with the Americans.
The French representative and ambassador remain neutral or are not even given a voice in the matter, while Qatar, Sweden and Spain side with America.

When the terrorists do lift the curtain on Oblak City, infighting will once again occur between the Russians and Americans, not openly of course, but indirectly, so that the public does not find out and become distressed. The entire conflict in the council is mostly kept hidden from the citizens, even though the media do spread rumors and absurdities every day. The dispute will be about whether or not to call in the FBI, a secret police or to even have armed forces sent to the city. The representative and ambassador of Russia will be against this, thinking it might also be a strategic move of the USA against Russia, whilst the Americans will be insisting on getting more people on the investigation.

Word Syndrome [fantasy, mystery, modern, detective(?)]

I'm currently writing my reply to you, Guilty Spark, in Google Drive, so don't think I've forgotten about you. ;) It's going to be a somewhat long post when I'm done, but I hope it will be enough, once I have finished. I am posting right now to answer the following question:

AlidaMaria said
Edit:I also have a small question. In what part of the world would Oblak City be? I mean for example Asia, Europe, Australia, The Near East, America or perhaps Africa? Or would the city be a mingling of cultures in a not-as-of-yet-specified location? I'm planning on making an exchange student however it would be nice to know what sort of culture to expect in the city.

Excuse me, but I will be honest and say that my eye twitched when I read your questions.
My dear, perhaps you missed this vital little page: http://wordsyndrome.weebly.com/oblak-city.html
Over there, to the right, under the little picture.
What kind of culture to expect? I do believe I stated that this will be a mix of many peoples even in my first post.

Word Syndrome [fantasy, mystery, modern, detective(?)]

Guilty Spark said
Is there any more information you can provide about the political scene in Oblak City? Not just names, but agendas, local methodology, etc.

Excuse me for the late reply, Guilty Spark, and also for answering your question with a question, but what might you be referring to with "local methodology"? Could you perhaps be a bit more specific?

Word Syndrome [fantasy, mystery, modern, detective(?)]

I am happy to see that I piqued your interest, Guilty Spark. I will be updating the site later today, thus you and everyone else may find a few new pieces of information regarding the city. I hope you like the entire concept of the role-play.

Redwing, I see you sent me a PM =3 I will give you a reply a bit later today. Out of curiosity, though, I would like to ask which timezone do you live in?

MyCatGinger said
Ooh, question, question!Are you going to pick the characters' notebooks or are we going to do them ourselves?I would expect that to be put in the "I would like..." section of the character sheet, but correct me if I'm wrong.

You pick a notebook you would like your character to have and send me a PM with your character's sheet. =)
In the "I would like" section you have to write which notebook you want, so I can know if the character will fit the specific role or not.
Hopefully, that answers your question.

MyCatGinger said Also, reading through the rules on the site, it says that "The Lovers" can pertain to two beings. Do both have to come from the same person?
EG, I make two characters, or can me and another person both make characters to fill those positions?

Ah, the Lovers. That strong, mindless, complicated feeling.
When it comes to them, yes, there can be two owners of that one notebook, however, I would like for two separate users to play those two characters. The method of that notebook is that the first person, who opens it, becomes the owner and they can then chose to share the ownership. The two people can not become owners at once.
It's not necessary for the positions to be filled up at the very beginning. If you would like, you and this other user can have a little episode of revealing or a gradual build up when the owner of the notebook decides to fully commit themselves to the other character and tell them about the notebook. Whatever you have in mind, please do PM me the details. =3

MyCatGinger said EDIT: Also, your signature. Mekakucity Actors aaaaah! <3

=P The anime was one of the biggest anime mistakes I've seen. Well, it's SHAFT, so there is an explanation. Lovely little series, it was. Not as tragic as some others I have seen, but the music is amazing.

Word Syndrome [fantasy, mystery, modern, detective(?)]

Three people in ten hours. I'm so happy! XD Thank you, everyone, for being interested.

To answer your first inquiry Redwing, we will be role-playing here, on the Guild site. The one I created is for the purpose of properly ordering and displaying information regarding the role-play. If I were to put everything on the OOC, it would become an incredibly long post, which I doubt will be a blessing for those looking for something specific. The site offers an easy access to the information and saves you the time of scrolling through piles of text in one post.

Regarding your second question, I was rather tired last night and did not put a character sheet in my first post. I will put the sheet in the edited version of this post in a few minutes, but I would like to get the response out first. When it comes to the character sheet, I don't want any area to be left blank or erased. I will specify where you can simply write "none", but don't do so where I haven't.
I would also like to note here that you can ask for someone to be a relative to your character. I will be playing a few characters, since I need to keep all sectors in check. If anyone is looking for relatives, feel free to ask me or anyone else.

Finally, the answer to the last one is that I would love them to be anime, but if your personal preference is real pictures, I have nothing against it. Considering your avatar, I am guessing that you will be going for anime X3

EDIT
Please, PM me the character sheets.

character sheet

Please, edit the coding on the sheet.

[b]Name:[/ b] [ full real name ]
[b]Nickname/Alias:[/ b] [ if any ]
[b]Age:[/ b] [ The age of your character must be acceptable for their occupation. ]
[b]Gender:[/ b] [ Male, female, transgender ]
[b]Orientation:[/ b] [ Heterosexual, homosexual,asexual, bisexual. For anything else, I would like you to ask me personally. ]
[b]Race:[/ b] [ A biological term. A character can be from one race of a mixture of many. Regardless of your choice, you will have to specify this in the History section. ]
[b]Ethnicity:[/ b] [ What your character identifies with. They can identify with one culture or consider themselves "a mix".]
[b]Spoken languages:[/ b] [ If you wish for more than two, please note the learning process in the History section.]
[b]Occupation:[/ b] [ Student, member of D.O.G., member of C.A.T., office worker, baker, lawyer, NEET, etc.]
[b]Position:[/ b] [ Grade 9 Biology class, Rank 2 detective, "tiger", small shop keeper, etc. ]
[b]Relationship status:[/ b] [ Married, Dating, Single.]
[b]Crush:[/ b] [ if any ]
[b]Dwelling place:[/ b] [ apartment, house, car, hotel, etc. ]
[b]Living location:[/ b] [ Which district does your character live in? For notebook owners it is preferable to come from Oso district.]

[b]Appearance:[/ b][ Anything concerning the body, such as eyes, hair, skin, height, proportions, blood type, modifications, etc. ] [ Include a picture to your liking, if you wish. ]
[b]Attire:[/ b] [ The clothing and style of your character in different situations. ]

[center][b]|| Personality ||[/ b][/ center]
( write here )

[center][b]|| History ||[/ b][/ center]
( write here )
( A note to all potential notebook owners: Do not write down how you found your desired notebook, because we will begin the role-play with the characters finding their notebooks. )

[b]A few likes in general:[/ b]
1.
2.
3.
(more?)

[b]A few dislikes in general:[/ b]
1.
2.
3.
(more?)

[b]Alergies, phobias and medical conditions:[/ b] (if any)
[b]License:[/ b] (if any) (driver's license, gun license, etc.)
[b]Pets:[/ b] (if any)
[b]Themesong:[/ b] (if any)

[b]I would like to:[/ b] [ Here you may write if you wish your character to be the owner of a notebook, what you would like to see in the story's future, any commentary on the plot, suggestions and the like. ]

Word Syndrome [fantasy, mystery, modern, detective(?)]

Original idea by Headphones

First of all, I would like to thank you, whoever you may be, for taking interest in this idea of mine. I hope that it will be to your liking and that we can role-play together.
Time and time again, I have been on both parties. I have read interest checks and I have made interest checks and I know just how hard it is on both sides. One has to handle reading a huge pile of text, some of which is not even necessary in some cases, and the other has to craft a piece of text for the soul purpose of attracting attention, but also containing all the ideas the author wishes to present. Each has its hardships.
Today, I take the latter role, as a presenter of an idea, however, rather than put a huge block of text without spaces that has all the points and shades of my idea, I have decided to keep it as simple as possible, in order to give you the base of that which is "Word Syndrome". If you are looking for details, I will include a link at the bottom of this post to the site I am currently in the process of making for the role-play.
I wish you happy reading. =3

1. What lies in the background of "Word Syndrome"?

answer

The background of "Word Syndrome", which leads to the events in the story we will all be writing, begins seven years ago, when an unknown phenomenon occurs in the top layers of Earth's spiritual vicinity. It lasts only 24 minutes while circling around the planet and, despite being noticed by the detectors of some organizations, it shatters and evidently leads to nothing. However, what remains unknown is that this occurrence is linked to the appearance of twenty two notebooks modeled after the cards of the major arcana, which can grant specific powers to their owners.
But why weren't these notebooks noticed by any of the underground organizations? Because they did not resonate with the frequency defined as "supernatural" and because of their simplicity. If you saw a notebook on the ground or no a bench, it's doubtful that you would think of it as an ultimate weapon to control the world.

Now, there is no need for you to know anything about the major arcana of tarot at all, because most normal people, such as our characters, wouldn't know a thing either.

Three months before the beginning of our story, two young people under the nicknames Mor and Luna post a video on YouTube, in which they state in a casual friendly manner that they will blow up the biggest bank in Elpa City. Of course, this is taken as a silly joke, until the bank actually blows up. The two continue to post videos on YouTube for the next three months, giving riddles that the police must decipher, in order to pinpoint their target before the stated time runs out. Thus far, the police has been capable of saving only thee of their victims. In their twenty second video, however, the duo announce that it is time to lift the curtain on a new stage.

I suggest that you read the full introduction, which I spared you. It will be of use to you, if you wish to join this role-play. You can find it on the homepage of the site.

2. How does "Word Syndrome" start off?

answer

We lift the curtain at Oblak City, a miktiopolis located in the Southern Federal District of Russia.
A miktiopolis is an independent city, which has been build by several countries under the title of "shareholders". Its aim is to unite the people of the planet and be the prime example of humans from different cultures living together in peace.
Both the city and the term "miktiopolis" are fictional and created by me. Their complete explanations can be found on the page "Oblak City" on the site.
Due to the fact that Oblak City is rather large, we will concentrate at the beginning at one of the districts named Oso.

3. What does the plot aim for and how will it develop?

answer

There are many things the plot aims for, one of which is to display the morals of different people. The main characters will be those who posses a notebook and they will hold a significant amount of power in their hands. Some will aim for destruction, others - to help those in need. There will be those who will try to stop the terrorists and others who might try to join them. There will be numerous obstacles placed in your way, which will prompt you to make a decision. Interactions, battles, restrictions. You will have to use everything you can to state your opinion and hold your ground against the hostile world. After all, no matter what you think, there will always be those who will ridicule and oppose you. Will you try to reform this world? Will you try to conserve it? One thing is for sure: you will not be left untouched by the effects of this "syndrome".

We will begin by mainly focusing on the attacks of the duo, Mor and Luna, who will be our first antagonists. They have many tricks up their sleeves and keep their true objectives hidden. However, all of their plans are connected to the notebook owners and they will get you involved, like it or not. Think of them as that sole "something" that pulls the characters out of their normal life and into a new world, which was hidden behind what they thought was their own. A typical setting for any anime or manga.

As for how this plot will develop, it truly depends on you. I have very light sketches of the future, but I try to keep them as such, mere sketches, because I don't know who will come my way or if anyone will at all. What can certainly be said is that you will make the plot along with everyone else. This is a role-play, after all. We're all here to have fun together and create a wonderful story. Don't think that I'll be pushing you up the steep mountain. Once we have gathered together and ready to start, we can ask each other what we would like to see more and how we can go about different things. We can add romance and drama at some points or completely neglect them. Again, it truly depends on what kind of group we will make. There will certainly be other mysteries and secrets to uncover and I am always open for ideas, thus feel free to post them below =3

4. How can my character fit in all of this?

answer

Your character can only be human in this role-play. No aliens. No cyborgs. No hybrids. Just plain human.
As a human you can be a notebook owner, a normal person or part of one of the two official teams working on the "Notebook" case, one of which are the police force of Oblak City, knows as D.O.G., and the other is a team from an underground organization that has joined the police for the purpose of solving the mystery, known as C.A.T.

On the site there are a total of twenty two pages in one section, each dedicated to one of the notebooks. In them are stated the specific rules of each notebook, which greatly restrict the power of the owner. Because I don't want this Int. Che. to get long, even though I'm using hiders, I will jot the basics of each notebook's power. In order to truly grasp what the power of every notebook, you will have to check the site.
I would like to note that it is not acceptable to not know the rules of the notebook you have chosen.

0. The Fool: A central card among all of them, the Fool is the "main character" of the tarot deck. I'd rather have you view the page, rather than write a description.
1. The Magician: By writing in this notebook the owner of this notebook will have the power to create anything that is currently in existence and inanimate.
2. The High Priestess: The owner of this notebook will have the power to create anything inanimate and up to two animate beings at a time by writing in this notebook.
3. The Empress: The owner of this notebook will have the power to write and draw living beings into existence.
4. The Emperor: The owner of this notebook will be capable of controlling a human's mind by writing in this notebook.
5. The Hierophant: The owner of this notebook will be capable of controlling a human's soul by writing in this notebook.
6. The Lovers: The owner of this notebook will be capable of ordering anything connected to humans and the feeling of love by writing in this notebook.
7. The Chariot: The owner of this notebook will be able to materialize their emotions into anything that has thus far existed by writing in this notebook.
8. Strength: The owner of this notebook will be able to control plants and animals by writing in this notebook, with the exception of humans.
9. The Hermit: I suggest you actually go to the page for this one.
10. The Wheel of Fortune - taken
11. Justice: The owner of this notebook will be able to bring to justice actions of living people by writing in this notebook.
12. The Hanged Man: Once more, this is a twister, so to speak, thus I advise you to go to the page and read the rules.
13. Death - hidden card
14. Temperance - A very artistic notebook, it allows anything written or drawn by the owner to become reality, but it must be an entirely new form of existence.
15. The Devil: The owner of this notebook will be capable of commanding the 72 pillars/demons of Solomon by writing in this notebook.
16. The Tower: The owner of this notebook will be able to bring about change by writing in this notebook.
17. The Star: The owner of this notebook will be able to control raw spiritual energy by writing in this notebook.
18. The Moon - hidden card
19. The Sun: The owner of this notebook can "purify" corruption, heal spiritual wounds and create light sources by writing in this notebook.
20. Judgement: The owner of this notebook will be able to timetravel and judge the souls that no longer posses a body by writing in this notebook.
21. The World - hidden card

Please remember that what I have written above is a rough description of the powers granted by the notebooks.

When it comes to accepting characters, it won't be "first comes, first serves". I will be judging every single form that has been submitted to me to determine whether or not it can be accepted. To get certain notebooks, such as Judgement's notebook or the Emperor's notebook, you will have to show me plenty of skill and creativity in your sheets.

5. What will be expected of potential role-players?

answer

Thank you for sticking with me thus far and, if you have clicked on this answer first, you know your priorities, don't you? ;)

The first thing I will request from potential role-players is understanding. Sometimes I might not feel well and sometimes I will have work to do other than role-playing, thus I would like you to be patient and not to burst out in anger, asking me when I'm going to move things along or something of the sort. Also, don't mock the looks of characters or their orientation. It's my job to judge the character sheets, not yours.

The second thing I would like to request from my role-players is, of course, activity. I would like to see IC posts at least twice a week, after all, we all have personal lives, however, I would like to see posts in the OOC. You can have various discussions in the OOC not even related to the role-play, so long as it doesn't go against forum rules and it's not chatspeak or spam. Rather than having an office atmosphere, I would like to create almost a family atmosphere, where we can freely write about what happened during our day, comment on our favorite anime, manga or TV show and simply get to know each other. It would be more comfortable if you were writing a story with friends than with strangers. =3

The third thing might go against some people's views, however, this is my role-play and my rules are rules ;3 . I want to see quality AND quantity. Don't feel shy or restricted. Write to your heart's content. Include personal thoughts, views, even philosophical outlooks on the situation, if you would like. In my opinion, while quantity can never defeat quality, in role-playing quality can also not top quantity. The two must exist in balance with each other, for they are the two sides of one coin. I do not wish to see a small chunk of text that you deem has perfect quality, nor a wall of text that is incomprehensible. Respect the story by writing as if it were your own, because, truth be told, it will be partly yours, once I have accepted you.
If I must really put a minimum of writing per post, I would say three to four decent paragraphs of text would do. I may change my mind, but only to raise the barrier, not to lower it.
When it comes to character sheets, I desire accurate descriptions of appearance, personality and history. Don't jumble it together and call it a day. Put some thought and physical effort into creating a character sheet. I personally prefer anime pictures and artworks, but if you want to use a photograph, I have nothing against it. You will have to write down a description, though.

6. When can we expect to start?

answer

IC

In the end, it turned out longer than expected ^ ^" I hope you have enjoyed reading through this Interest Check.
Here is the link to the site: http://wordsyndrome.weebly.com/
As mentioned before, it is still in construction, but everything regarding the introduction, the notebooks, the D.O.G. and the C.A.T. has been completed, thus feel free to browse around. If there are any questions, suggestions or opinions, do post below and tell me what you think.

~Thank you for your time~

Playing with virtual reality and social identity: What's real? What's not?

Lightly speaking, I am astounded. Finally, a person with an idea I haven't seen in awhile. *slowly claps*
A battle of morals, of identity, of self. I am now quite interested. Although, as mentioned before, I'm still not well aware of how DnD works, rest assured for I have played MMORPGs, thus I know many terms and how such games work.

If by chance you are having trouble with categorizing the information and neatly organizing it, might I suggest the following site: www.weebly.com/
It offers a site creation for free and it is quite nifty, if I do say so myself. Sometimes it can become a bit bothersome, but it's great for gathering all the information needed for a role-play. If you are interested in seeing what a final work on it looks like, feel free to browse around the site I made for a role-play of mine: http://6am-yesterday.weebly.com/
Needless to say, please don't use any of the information written there.

Sarcor, could you also give me a few notes on character creation? I am thinking of submitting a male ex-hacker with an unfortunate past (or maybe not so unfortunate?). Hopefully, he'll we worthy of your standards when I create his character sheet (it's currently a bit late/half asleep right now, thus I will do it tomorrow).
Also, will there be different species/races in the virtual world or will all the characters be human or something else? If you need ideas for the world creation, I would be glad to help. At the very least, I am a good image and gif finder XD

Playing with virtual reality and social identity: What's real? What's not?

From what I see you aren't going for the "trapped in the game and can't get out" setting that has been contaminating a lot of stories lately, for which I am glad.

Overall, I like what has been presented. Fairly structured. Straight forward. However, I am still not set on joining. Could you possibly explain to me what the plot is aiming for or how we will build the story? Will the development of the story solely depend on the characters or do you have something in mind for the future? I'm not familiar with "Log Horizon", albeit I've heard the name and seen a summary, nor with "Otherland" or with DnD mechanics (yes, if you are wondering, I exist). Will that be a problem?

6 AM . . . Yesterday

After waking her as lightly as possible, Rasui observed how this unfamiliar girl pushed herself up, in order to stand in front of him. Her movements were stable and elegant on those two thin pale legs, yet it became evident that she required a minute or two to assess the situation before her. It puzzled the young man as to why the expression of shock made its way on her child-like face. Surely she knew what she was here for, unless she was unwillingly forced to or this was her first time. Regardless of which it was, it was far more natural to be embarrassed or scared, rather than startled. Perhaps this was only the first stage of the emotions that would follow and it was simply due to her slow pace of experiencing them that the shock was overwhelmingly painted on her. As the both of them remained silent, the thought of saying something started to pick on the Key’s head, yet it was shooed away by the little lady’s sudden exclaim:

Blitz Sylph/Kai said “Y-you! What the hell do you think you’re… say… ING?!”

For a reason unknown to him, she could not properly finish her sentence and covered her mouth with her small delicate hands.
‘What? Am I that scary?’ Rasui wondered. Turning his head to look behind his shoulder, he noticed an old pocket mirror on the side-desk and easily snatched it. Taking a good look at his messy black hair and vibrant green eyes, despite there being smudges on the glass, he concluded: ‘I look as gorgeous as ever. What’s her problem?’

In the mean time, his new companion had also taken the chance to examine her own body and her slight murmurings attracted the youngster’s attention. Despite her voice being so delicately feminine, soon the ‘gentleman’ was reminded just how loudly a woman could scream.

Blitz Sylph/Kai said “EEEEEEEEEEEEEK!”

This unexpected rise of tension was enough to make the man take one step back and have his neck hairs stand on end. Albeit in human shape, the only human attribute he didn’t possess were the pinnas, the outer ears, yet if he did, he would have reflexively attempted to block any sound entering through them. Seeing as he could not do anything about this irritable noise, the boy gritted his teeth as the wave passed through and resonated in the small room, hitting him from all sides. Apparently this girl was not looking forward to being with him and, even though he figured it might be a Player-only service, the spark of Loki’s annoyance was lit. Not only had he went out of his way to be as kind as possible, but he was currently holding himself from choking this nuisance, and her way of repaying him was to pierce his eardrums and run and hide in the corner, as if he were the most revolting pervert in the city. Using the sombrero hat as a shield, she had crouched down and hid behind it, trying to cover her now embarrassed self. Such cowardice was getting on his nerves. Gaining somebody’s trust was never something he had bothered himself with, especially in a predicament such as this one. That was why he quickly dropped the “gentleman act” and strolled forward toward this bothersome girl.

“Hey, what the hell are you-” he began, his mood explained by the tone of his voice, yet no sooner did he speak when he was interrupted once again.

“Girl, what the hEAl was that?” the woman that lived above asked as audibly as ever.
“I have nooo ideA. Is somebAdy gettin’ molested?”
“Ewww. Oh, well, if the guy’s hot, I wouldn’t mind switchin’ this scumbag for ‘im.”
“Oh, use that! Use that! “Even tha molesta next door is better than you”! Use it when you fight!”
“Girl, you are awe-”

“Will you two shut up already!” Rasui jumped into their conversation loud and clear. Neighborhood relationships were definitely not going to start off well. “I can’t hear my own thoughts because of you! So stop yappin or I’ll personally stitch your mouths with a hound tooth!”

Thankfully the two females ceased their bubbling and resumed their conversation via chat. This pleased the Key, although he could hear the loud tapping of their keyboards from time to time. While he had let out his irritation he had been looking at the ceiling, but now he directed his gaze at the girl in his room, who had yet to come out from behind the big hat. Just as he stepped closer once more, she rose suddenly and threw the sombrero in his general direction, which he easily dodged seeing as it was aimed badly. The intensity of her blush had gradually gone down and was barely visible from her now stern expression. It was obvious she was trying to appear tough or at least serious and it almost made Loki smirk, especially when she spoke.

Blitz Sylph/Kai said “Say, Rasui. Do you have any idea who you’re talkin’ to?”

‘How cheeky.’ he thought ‘She’s pretty annoying, though.’ Afterwards he barely heard anything else his acquaintance said and continued his inner monologue. ‘Man, this sucks. Even though I’m in the Main, my luck’s not all that good, huh. Well, whatever. Might as well find out what’s going on here.’

While in his thoughts, his eyes carefully scanned his near surroundings, searching for anything important, like a note or a hint. His previous scan from above on the bed had resulted to nothing, but this time he managed to find something. It was near the spot where the girl had lain and, oddly enough, it looked familiar. The annoyance was blurting out the last of her words, but he nonchalantly crouched down and picked up the item of his interest. It was a big parallelepiped device, a phone to be precise, and it was the same brand as his new master’s. Without questioning his logic even for a moment, Rasui pressed a button on the side and moved his fingers left and right on the screen, which resulted in the quick unlock of the Huawei Ascend P6. The screen was definitely the exact same one, not to mention the Key Shop app was there. Not waiting a second for the intruder to scroll about, the “welcoming message” arrived and the spirit shoved it away, which automatically lead to the opening of the Map.

“Underground Main, Dodgeball Street, No.13, huh? Not bad. Oh! The first three drinks at “The Swing” are on the house tonight?! SWEET! Those mission awards! Shantav knows how to play his music, as always! But… only 20 Volts… What to do… Where is that dimwitted… Oh...” Rasui commented and realization hit him as sharply and as suddenly as a brick falling on a person’s head. ‘phone...girl...missing idiot...not really missing idiot...’ Even for him putting two and two together without much thought was nothing.

And in that very moment Rasui facepalmed himself so hard with his free hand that it left a red mark that would most likely last for the next few minutes. His shut-in male master was either given a very elaborate cosplay costume or he had been turned into a female. The most important thing that had happened was that the Key had hit in him directly.
‘Great. As if that Loki thing wasn’t enough.’

“Oi, pancake!” he called out to Kai, despite being in such a small room, his hand now off of his face. “From now on, you’re Blitz Sylph! Got that, Blitz? Now hurry it up and grab anything that would fetch a good price.”

Not having the slightest interest in his, correction, her reaction, the young man put the phone in his pocket and started picking things up from the shelves and ground. This was only fair from his viewpoint. His key was most likely in her pocket, after all. If she wanted the phone back, she’d have to give him the key.
From the many items on ‘display’, Loki sorted out those, which he presumed would earn him some Volts and he was willing to give away. The two traffic cones, the old pocket mirror, a water gun, five party hats, three old clocks that sounded about right while being shaken, two fluffy rugs. All of these objects he placed in the Bag by simply tossing them to the side by thinking “in the bag”. They magically vanished before impact with the ground, as if they had been wiped away by an erracer. In the middle of his ‘treasure hunting’, Rasui turned his gaze towards the girl and said:
“Put some things in the Bag, already! Just drop them while thinking “in the bag”, “into the bag” or something with “bag” in it.”

Of course, he was still irritated. His nerves had been messed with by those noisy women and by the fact that the system had played him rather well. His luck was never that good to begin with, but never had he expected a genderbend. Cases such as a change in gender were extremely rare, to an extent that they were considered simply rumors and nothing more. To have one in the flesh right in front of him was both startling and disturbing, but he didn’t pay it much mind. Once he was done collecting materials that could give him profit, it didn’t matter if his new owner was female, male or a chimpanzee in Cell City.

“Great! These should definitely be enough to earn me some Volts!” he said cheerfully with a smile. “Oh, right, about you...” Rasui paused as he looked at Blitz. “It’ll be great if you just sit and played wife.” he stated bluntly. “Then again, you might come in handy at some point. Hmm.” For a moment he remained silent with his hand against his mouth in a ‘thoughtful gesture’, but it didn’t take him long to smile earnestly and look at her with his bright green eyes while grabbing her hand. “Alright! Lets go!”

With that, the young man dashed out of the room, dragging his new partner along, not forgetting to whisper the word “Lock” so that their home’s door may lock itself upon shutting itself.

What awaited them beyond their front door was a long corridor from left to right, composed of many colourful squares. White, orange, blue, green, pink. They were all bright and welcoming, yet many were also cracked and smudged with something. There were other apartment doors to be seen, as expected of an apartment complex, but there was also a hole in the floor at one point, atop of which were a few planks of steel for passers by. This hole also had a ladder attached to it and was frequently used for passing from one floor to the other, even though at the end of each corridor there was a path that lead down.

Rasui turned left and ran while gripping Blitz’s hand, also jumping over the mentioned hole while doing so. He was visibly excited, but knew where he was going. The destination was “Base 5” on BAYX street and the goal - Volts.

Reaching the end of that corridor, they found themselves in another larger one, which also ran from left to right and was the gathering point of many other smaller hallways that contained apartment entrances. There were no doors here. Only two stairwells in an underpass fashion leading down to the lower floor, as well as many colourful signs, squares and graffiti. From this point the youngster turned right, without the need to stop and wonder which way to go. Cables slid in the corners of the halls as the duo turned left when reaching that end, once more entering a similar place. It had fewer entrances and no stairwells at all, but the advertisements were as plentiful as ever and two lizards the size of a human walked on two legs, wearing hoodies and jeans, and conversed about trivial matters. Rasui flew right past them to the left, still having a strong grip on his mas-, pardon, mistress. Another corridor. The signs flashed intimidatingly with their half-life lights, but provided a colouful source of light which was much needed, considering some of the lamps on the ceiling were not working. The scent floating in the air was rather strange, similar to gasoline, but not quite. It tingled the senses and would be rather bothersome for those not used to it. Pieces of broken glass could be seen here and there on the floor and some wires loosely hung above from one end to the other. The Key could not give two seconds of his time to acknowledge these details and ran forward. Soon they would exit the maze that was this building and enter the crowds, something he couldn’t wait for. This time they turned left again, but before reaching the end, Rasui stopped midway and pulled Blitz right and up a flight of stairs. They passed one floor and went higher to the next. From there he intended to go left, but just when he took a few steps, he stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a familiar voice singing.

music that is to be played

`Moshimo mata' `ano toki wa' nante iukedo
[ If again, even if that time will say what it will ]

Itsumo kōkaisakinitatazu ni nanda
[ To always regret and lose something ]

It was the echo of a powerful voice, something that had to battle many obstacles in order to reach him. Instantly turning around, Loki dragged the girl in the opposite direction even faster than before. First turn right then turn left and once more to the right, they passed through the brightly-coloured pathways, dodging the occasional zebra walking a microwave or scarecrow on a hoverboard. The corridors gradually became smaller and smaller, until they finally reached their new goal - a dead end. However, instead of there being a wall in front of them, there was an iron parapet and an opening, from which natural light entered. Once they had arrived, Rasui let go of Blitz’s hand and hurried to stand on this terrace and, holding onto the railing, watched with his eyes wide open as the singer continued:

Kando zero sukoshi tarinai atama o
[ My emotions are zero, my head is missing a bit ]

Furishibotte agaite tatte nanimokawaranai no sa
[ Even if I muster, even if I struggle, nothing changes ]

Mitabime no uso wa mō barete shimatta yo
[ The third lie has already been exposed ]

Hirakinaotte sa
[ Be serious]

Shiranai shiranai shiranai
[ I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know. ]

“Amazing! Akiakane’s awesome! Never thought she’s have a LIVE in the UG, though. Today must be my lucky day~” Rasui chirped happily, knowing how expensive an actual ticket in Akasan was.

The terrace was small, yet provided a good view of the surroundings.
The half-red-half-green-haired singer was standing on top of a huge TV screen, on which the video of her song was playing. Other smaller screens, which were scattered about on the buildings and usually advertised products, were showing different parts of the stage and provided a glimpse of the idol.
This was an opening, a place where the sky could be seen between the tall skyscrapers. It was almost circular in shape and wouldn’t have existed if the builders had simply continued up. There was, of course, a building further down below, but it had not increased in size, due to the need of ventilation. Many fans had gathered on the bridges that criss-crossed the air and connected one building to the other, as well as on terraces and on flying cubes and seats. Colouful sticks were being waved in the air while some attempted to sing along, yet Akiakane’s powerful voice deafened them all. She was emotional, as always.

Moshikashite boku dake ga kono sekai
[ What if I were the only one ]

Iru no? Dare mo kare mo onaji-gao o shi teru
[ in this world? Here and there, everyone has the same face ]

`Itsuka mata kono basho de aimashou'
[ “Lets meet again at this place”]

Nante sutekina ndeshou
[ Isn’t it wonderful? ]

Datte
[ But ]

Kireina nagame kara
[ From a peacefully beautiful gaze ]

Miorosu machinami wa
[ the townscape I look down on ]

Kegareta mo no subete
[ has its filthy things all ]

Kireina hikari de gomakashite iru ndakara
[ hidden with beautiful light, you know. ]

Regardless of who you were or where you came from, you would understand the lyrics of the song. When it came to direct conversations, the system translated everything in your own language in your mind. It was as if everyone was speaking in your tongue. Yet when it came to songs, the words remained the same in the language they were written in for the sake of the song’s fluency. However, in a way only the system knew of, everyone would comprehend what was being sung. As if you instantly learned the translation on spot. Unfortunately, while music could be understood in such a way, you could not learn the entire language in this manner. Thus, if you were to go to the world or country using the said language, you would not be able to speak it.

Ne

Ando zero sukoshi yaba sugiru ima o
[ My emotions are zero against the little bit dangerous present ]

Furishibotte agaite tatte nanimokawaranai no sa
[ Even if I muster, even if I struggle, nothing will change ]

Shi-dome no uso wa mō tsūyō shinainara
[ The fourth lie won’t reach anymore ]

Hirakinaotte sa
[ Be serious ]

Yaritai yaritai yaritai
[ I want to, I want to, I want to. ]

“So cool~ Her voice cuts right through you, but the pain is kind of sweet. Don’t you think so, Blitzu~” Rasui commented, toying with his mistress’s name.







--Key Skills ready--
--Player Skills ready--

--Estimated Midpoints--

--0Mari--
--Strength 8--
--Up. Excellent--
--Speed 6--
--Down. Good-Bad--
--Endurance 8--
--Down. Good--
--No current increase from Passive skill--

--Librarian--
--Speed 6--
--Up. Good--
-- Endurance 6--
--Up. Good--


The abovementioned details were displayed on 0Mari’s phone and sounded in both his and the Librarian’s minds through telepathy. Their team was in a dangerous territory and already in their first battle.

The junker that had collided with a book rolled on the floor before pushing itself up by using the two limbs on its back for support. It snapped angrily and lashed its tail, which made the rest of the pack even more hostile. One of them leapt in the air and grabbed the metal spike that the Player had thrown at them, as if it were playing fetch, until it threw it back with a great amount of force. There was no real aim whatsoever, simply a general direction.
During the very instant the object was thrown into the air, one monster leapt towards Bookman, whilst two others ran below to use their beartraps to bite his legs. Four others made sure to surround the two-legged beings, whilst the remaining three aimed for 0Mari, two using their jaws and the last - the axe on the end of its tail.

All the while, the cat with the TV head remained on the roof of the cube building, “watching” what was happening.